Protector
by night.scare
Summary: Harley wanted nothing more than to survive. She had no plans of creating relationships with anyone. However, along the way she meets a few people who weasel their way into her life as well as her heart and they have no intentions of leaving. Daryl/OC
1. Tired Eyes

"_We advise that everyone stay indoors until we are able to identify the cause of this new virus. The CDC has told us to avoid anyone who has the following symptoms: a fever, chills, hallucinations, vomiting..."_

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><p>She was just turning twenty-one when the outbreak started. She had seen the news reports and simply snorted; a few isolated incidents across the country didn't really concern her any, especially after the past few years when the bird and swine flu proved to be nothing more than a bad case of the common cold.<p>

It was almost Spring break and she was going to be celebrating her 21st birthday with a couple of friends back home. Not like being twenty-one would change much, she'd spent most of her freshman and sophomore years at college getting completely obliterated every single night and then crawling her way to her early morning classes. Being legal just meant she'd be able to go bar hopping without the fear of getting kicked out. She was just happy to be going home.

Back then, the thought of fighting off rabid human beings trying to take a bite out of her flesh never even crossed her mind at that point. But, here she was now, bashing in the brains of some little old lady who probably liked baking cookies and knitting sweaters for her grandchildren before the infection took over.

The dented and bloodstained metal bat she wielded that she had dubbed, 'Ol' Reliable', had to be covered in the blood of hundreds of others who had ended up like the old lady. She swung the bat one more time, smashing in the old woman's skull, assuring that she wouldn't be getting up again. It had taken her a couple of days to realize that you had to destroy the brain to make sure they would be down for the count.

Glancing down at her bat, her lip upturned with disgust at the blood dripping off of it, "Gross." She grumbled, wiping the blood off on her jeans before scouring the area around her, looking for her little blonde companion.

A low whistle caught her attention and immediately had her on guard as she whipped around, the gun that was tucked in her waistband was now in her hand, pointing at source of the whistle.

"Whoa now, girlie. I ain't gonna hurt cha." The man said as he held his hands up in the air. She eyed him with caution. If she hadn't been the one pointing the gun at him, his six-foot-something stature would be intimidating for someone of her five-foot-six height. When she made no notion of replying to him, he spoke again, arrogance and stupidity lacing his voice, "Ya mute or some'in darlin'?" He asked, his lips curling up in amusement.

He looked as though he was going to say something else, but the creaking of a car door just a few feet behind her caught his attention. In an instant, he had a gun out, pointing it at the car, ready to shoot should anything that moved even a millimeter.

The woman's eyes widened, "Hey! Hey!" She cried out, stepping forward a bit, "Settle down! It's fine!"

He looked confused for a moment before lowering his gun once he saw a head pop up from behind the open window of the car, blue eyes glancing curiously over at him, "Jus' a lil girl..."

"Stay there." She ordered the girl who nodded, ducking down a bit further behind the car, "Who're you?" She asked, looking pointedly at the older man, her gun still fixed on him.

She could tell from the snarl of his lip and the beady look in his eyes that she didn't like him. He was a foul, vile excuse for a human being if she ever did see one. It almost made her bitter seeing that this type of person was still alive and kicking when other good and holy people were dead or worse.

"Harley, look out!"

The cold feeling of a barrel of a gun being stuck to her head froze her in her place, "I'd put that down if I were you."

Harley closed her eyes, exhaling through her nose before dropping her gun to the ground, "Just let us go, we ain't harmin' no one."

She felt the pressure of the gun against her head disappear, "That why ya had your gun pointed at my brother?"

She turned to look into the blue eyes of her assailant, "He startled me. Can't be too careful now-a-days, don't know what kind of people you're gonna run into."

He nodded, ignoring his brother's snort of disdain, "Your name?"

She hesitated before speaking, not entirely sure whether or not she wanted to get mixed up with the two men, but regardless, she introduced herself, "Harley." She looked past the man in front of her to the girl who was poking her head out from behind the car, "That's Anna."

"Daryl Dixon," He introduced himself, "That over there is my brother Merle."

"Just you two?" Merle asked, "Hard ta believe two lil girls like yourselves survived this long."

Harley gave him a dirty look before retorting, "Hard to believe a dumb ass inbred like yourself survived this long."

Merle felt his eye twitch with annoyance, "Now listen here ya lil bitch-"

"C'mon, we got shit to do." Daryl interrupted his brother. He turned to Harley who was keeping an eye on the older Dixon, "If ya follow this road all the way up, you'll come across a camp with about fifteen people near the quarry." He told her, pointing up the road they were currently on, "They'll probably be more than happy ta take you two in." He said before adding under his breath, "Been doin' a lot of tha' lately."

"We're fine." Came Harley's response.

Daryl paused for a moment, looking at the tiny woman up and down, noting the tired look in her eyes and the way her body seemed to slump with exhaustion, "Suit yaself." He shrugged, turning to his brother, "Lessgo Merle, got more huntin' ta do."

Merle threw Harley a wink that made her stomach churn, "Hope y'all don't get bit, be a shame putting a bullet through ya pretty lil heads."

Harley scowled, motioning for Anna to come to her and when she was within arm's reach, she grabbed her by the back of her worn out tank top, yanking it a bit too hard, "Let's go."

While the two men walked away, heading back into the wooded area, Harley and Anna trudged in the opposite direction of the supposed camp that Daryl had told them about.

Perhaps a few weeks ago, Harley would've taken the man up on his offer to join the camp. The prospect of being around other people, particularly those who are her age and not an eight year old girl would've sent her running there at the mention of it, but now that she's seen how cruel people can be in the face of the apocalypse, her trust in other human beings has dwindled and she wasn't willing to risk her or Anna's life when up until now, they've been perfectly capable of surviving on their own.

"Hope we don't run into those guys again." Anna grumbled once the two brothers were no longer in sight.

"Agreed."

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><p>The sun was beginning to descend from the sky as Harley and Anna rummaged through some abandoned vehicles on the highway, trying to scrounge up whatever supplies they could even though a lot of these cars had already been looted, but there were always things that people overlooked.<p>

"Found some nail clippers!" Anna called out from the truck directly behind Harley, "Keep 'em or chuck 'em?"

Harley didn't bother looking back, continuing to stuff clothes that would fit either her or Anna into her bag, "If they're clean keep 'em, ain't gonna be cuttin' my nails with some grimy ass clippers."

Anna giggled at the older woman as she dropped the nail clippers into her tiny knapsack which was already filled with miscellaneous objects and anything her eight year old mind found amusing.

"Lookit this." Harley called out, pulling an acoustic guitar out from the back of the van she was looking through, tilting it to further inspect the instrument, "Seems to be in pretty good condition too." She noted.

Anna peered curiously at it, "You can play?"

Harley gave her a bit of a mischievous grin, "A bit." She leaned the guitar against the back of the van before continuing to search through the suitcases in there, "When we set up camp tonight I'll play you a little tune." She threw the younger girl a wink.

Anna gave Harley a wide grin but it faded when she looked past Harley, eyes going wide. Harley swiveled around, a frown marring her face as she stared at the second pair of rednecks to grace her presence in a matter of an hour.

"What have we here..." One said as he and his buddy stopped about twenty feet away from the two girls, the rifle he held over his shoulder signifying that he thought he was the one in the position of power in this situation.

Harley glanced between him and the other man who had a handgun tucked into the front of his pants, "It'd prolly be best ta give us all yer weapons and supplies." He said to her, a disgustingly vile grin etched into his face.

This wasn't the first time she'd come across these type of people; less human than even the walkers that were roaming about. They didn't care if they took one human life or twenty as long as it meant they survived.

"Behind me." Harley ordered Anna, who complied taking notice of the way Harley's body had become rigid, "Sorry," She directed at the two men, her voice steady, "We can't do that."

"That's a shame." The man with the rifle said as he raised his gun off his shoulder, pointing it at the two girls, "Was hopin' we could have a bit of fun wit ya after we robbed ya blind." The crude implication caused Harley's lip to upturn slightly.

Before he could even think of pulling the trigger, Harley had her own gun out, which had been tucked into the back of her pants, a bullet was imbedded right between his eyes in a matter of milliseconds. Unfortunately for her, his partner was not as slow, however, his aim left much to be desired.

Harley had never been shot before, but she assumed the searing pain in her leg had meant that she had been, "Sonovabitch." She all but screamed, trying to ignore the pain as she shakily aimed and shot. The man fell to the ground with a 'thud', blood pooling around his head from the bullet wound.

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><p>Daryl was just about to shoot at the deer he'd been tracking for a little over an hour when three gunshots rang through the air, effectively scaring the deer off and probably any other animals within a two mile radius.<p>

"The fuck was tha'?" Merle asked, coming up from behind Daryl, carrying a load of dead squirrel.

"Ain't got a clue," Daryl said, poising his crossbow over his shoulder before glancing back at his brother, "But sounds like someone jus' rang tha dinner bell."

Merle grumbled a bit, "Best we get the fuck outta here."

Daryl nodded his head, cursing whatever bastard decided to scare off his game, that damned deer would have fed the camp for a week, but then he found his mind wandering to those two girls they'd come across just a little while ago and a small part of him hoped those gunshots had nothing to do with them.

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><p>Anna cried out her name as Harley collapsed to the ground, clutching her bleeding leg. She really hoped he hadn't hit an artery, or else it wouldn't be too long before she would bleed out.<p>

Harley gritted her teeth as pain surged through her leg when she tried to stand up, "I'm alright." Her efforts were in vain as she landed back on her behind, "I'm fine, I'm fine." She repeated, trying to calm the hysterical girl.

"We need help!" Anna told her, her voice trembling.

Harley narrowed her eyes, "I told you, I'm fine! Don't need no help!"

The girl didn't listen as her mind raced, she wasn't a fool, she knew Harley would die if they didn't get help soon. With the sun going down and the pinkish hue in the sky slowly becoming a deeper red, she knew she had less than an hour before the sun went down and the walkers became more active.

So she ran.

"No Anna!" Harley screamed and when the girl made no attempt to even turn back she groaned, her palm pressed firmly against the bleeding wound in an attempt to stop it, "Stupid girl. She's gonna be the death of me."

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><p>An older man stood on top of an old, beat up RV with a pair of binoculars around his neck and a rifle in his hand. The day had been a bit dull, but that was never a bad thing now-a-days, they were lucky to not have had many instances since they moved their camp up into the quarry. However, it seemed as though his dull day was going to be going to hell when he spotted a small figure in the distance.<p>

He seemed to not have been the only one to notice because the muscular man who was standing on the ground beside the RV shouted up to him, "Talk to me, Dale! What is that?!"

Dale didn't say anything as he grabbed hold of his binoculars, locking his sights on the little blonde figure as it ran up the hill, "Looks like a little girl to me." He observed.

"She a geek?" The other man asked, looking a bit alarmed, ready to grab his shotgun if need be. They hadn't run into many walkers up in the mountains, a few strays who probably had lived near by before the outbreak, but that didn't mean that the walkers from the city wouldn't start migrating out of it once the food supply ran low and when that happened, they were going to have to get the hell out of Dodge.

The little girl sprinting was the first indication that she wasn't one of the walking dead, "Doesn't look like she is. She isn't being chased by any either." Dale pulled away from his binoculars to look down at the man, "Better go meet her at the entrance of the camp, Shane, she looks a bit frightened."

Shane nodded, hauling ass to meet up with the young girl, "It's a new thing every day." He mumbled.

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><p>Anna huffed and puffed as she finally reached the campsite, she had almost thought that the two redneck brothers had lied to her and Harley about the location of their camp, but she felt relief when she saw the camper and cluster of tents around it. Her legs were beginning to numb and her lungs burned with every breath she took, but she didn't stop until she was at the entrance to the camp where she found a broad shouldered man waiting for her.<p>

Shane didn't even have a chance to say a word before she started talking frantically, tripping over her words as her mouth tried to catch up with the influx of thoughts, "Please help! My friend, she got shot and she's bleeding really bad and I don't know what to do and she can't die, please!"

Harley was all that Anna really had left now. Her mother and father were long gone, walker chow most likely, but it wasn't the prospect of being alone in world ridden with walkers that scared her, it was losing Harley that did.

Shane placed his hands onto the girl's shoulders, trying to calm her, "Alright, alright." He spoke in a soft voice, a small smile on his face, one he usually reserved for kids especially, "Now, this friend of yours, she wasn't bit, was she?"

Anna's brows furrowed as she replied angrily, "Told you! She was shot! Harley ain't stupid enough ta get bit!"

Shane blinked, surprised with the irritation the girl displayed, "Where is she?"

Anna was still trying to catch her breath as she directed him to where Harley was, or at least where she hoped Harley still was, "It's gettin' dark and I dun want no walkers gettin' ta her before I can get back!"

Shane nodded, "Alright, you stay right here. I'm gonna go get some more help and then we'll get your friend." Anna nodded at Shane's orders ignoring the curious glances that some of the other inhabitants of the camp were giving her, including a little boy who was being held onto by who Anna could only assume was his mother.

Shane made his way to the tent of the resident Asian, knowing he'd be more than willing to go on a retrieval with him, "''ey Glenn, get out here, we got a situation."

It wasn't half a second before said Asian poked his head out of the tent, "What kind of situation?"

Shane jerked his head towards Anna, "Lil girl o'er there says her friend got shot, bleedin' pretty badly." He explained, "Gotta go get her 'fore she bleeds to death."

Glenn didn't need to hear anymore as he got out of his tent, following Shane back to where the little girl stood, looking up at the sky worriedly as it began to darken.

"Where ya'll goin'?" The slender woman, who was gripping the little boy asked.

"We'll be right back, Lori," Shane reassured her, "Lil girl needs our help with somethin', shouldn't take longer than a half an hour."

Lori's lips pursed a bit, "Be careful." She called out to them as they all hopped into the black SUV that was parked a couple of feet away. Her face was marred with worry as she watched them pull away.

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><p>"Where's your friend?" Shane asked as he helped the little girl out of the car, his dark eyes searching the area for any sign of a person who was not dead.<p>

Anna looked around, panic in her eyes, "Harley?!" She cried out, frightened that the woman was not where she had left her.

"O'er here." Came the Southern drawl that Anna was all too familiar with by now and Anna could feel the weight being lifted off her shoulder as she saw a hand being waved from behind a small sedan.

The three quickly rushed over to where the girl was, finding her propped up against the car, nearly looking like one of the walkers that they'd been fighting off for weeks.

She was pale, much too pale for her usual Georgia tanned skin and the makeshift tourniquet that was fashioned around her still bleeding leg didn't seem to be helping at all.

"'bout time ya got here." Harley croaked, the fear that had been creeping upon her with the absence of her young companion had subsided as she noticed the two men with Anna, "Was worried ya forgot about me." Anna offered her a weak smile knowing that Harley's playful banter was a sure sign that she was okay, at least for now.

The two men studied the woman carefully. She was indeed not what they were expecting when they came. If Shane was completely honest, he had half expected a little girl such as Anna herself to be wounded, not a twenty-something year old woman.

Harley noticed the two men standing there dumbly, "Ya two gonna help me or what?" Harley snapped, breaking them from their silence.

"Right, sorry." Glenn apologized, taking to one side of Harley while Shane took to the other. The two hauled her up off of the floor, carefully guiding her to the SUV all the while being mindful of her injured leg.

"Don't forget to grab our bags," Harley told Anna who nodded, immediately going to retrieve the bags, "And the guitar!"

Anna smiled just slightly as she picked up the guitar remembering Harley's promise to her about playing her a song a little later on. Although, she knew that now it would have to wait until Harley wasn't bleeding profusely and near death.

Harley sighed, stress alleviating itself from her as she leaned against the backseat of the SUV, her head falling back as she stared at the charcoal colored roof of the car. Right now, she sort of wished she'd listened to her father and joined the medical profession when he told her to.

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><p>"Fuck!" Harle's screaming was muffled by the belt she was biting down onto as the Asian boy dug through her wound for the bullet fragments with a pair of tweezers, which she hoped he had had the common sense to sterilize before he started sticking them into people's bodies, "Fuckin' hurts like a bitch!"<p>

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Glenn repeated over and over as he tried to get all of the shards of the bullet out. There was just one left that he could see and he just couldn't seem to get a hold of it with the tiny pair of tweezers that were definitely not meant to be digging through the human body.

She made a whining noise, a signal for him to hurry up before she passed out due to the immense pain and when she thought she was just about to go over the edge, Glenn hit something hard with the tweezers.

"Got it!" In one swift motion, the last piece of the bullet was out and he nearly received a punch to the face in the process.

She barely had any time to recover from that gruesome process before Lori walked into the tent holding a knife with a scalding red blade, "I'm sorry about this."

Harley nodded, dismissing the apology and just bit back down onto the belt, bracing herself for the pain she was about to incur. Lori brought the flat edge of the knife onto the bullet wound after Glenn had poured a bit of alcohol over it which alone had caused Harley to cringe.

From outside of the tent, a long, unpleasant howl could be heard and many of those within ear range grimaced, only having to imagine how painful it must be.

Anna was sitting just outside the tent, her knees drawn up to her face as she listened to the agonizing screeches coming from her friend. She winced as she heard Harley swear loudly, indicating that they were done.

She tried to peek into the tent, but sighed heavily when she noticed Lori and Glenn blocking her view of Harley.

"Ya need to rest honey, y'ave been through a lot today." Lori spoke softly to the wounded woman, who laid down without much protest, but not before whispering something into the woman's ear receiving a smile and a nod in return, "G'night." Harley was knocked out before Lori and Glenn even had a chance to exit the tent.

"She gonna be alright?" Anna asked as they came out.

Lori smiled, patting the girl on the head, smoothing down any stray blonde hairs, "She's gonna be just fine. Just needs a bit of rest and she'll be up and around by tomorrow."

Anna looked up at the woman, scanning her face for any reason to believe she might be lying, but the kind look on the woman's face caused her to relax and it was in that moment that Anna decided, in a way only possible for children, that she liked Lori. The older woman reminded Anna of her own mother, even if it was only in the kindness of her smile.

She missed her mother. In all this time that her and Harley have been roaming the woods of Georgia, she really hasn't had a chance to just _miss_ her mother. Most days she just hoped that this was just one big nightmare which she would wake up from and find herself cradled in her mother's arms with soothing words being whispered into her ear before she was tucked back into her bed, her mother promising to stay with her until she fell back to sleep.

Lori interrupted her pondering by placing a hand on her shoulder, "What d'ya say to some food, sweetie?"

Anna nodded, liking the sound of filling up her empty stomach, leaving the thoughts of her mother behind as she followed after Lori, joining the rest of the camp by the fire.

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><p><strong>I hope you guys like the revised version of the first chapter! I know this first chapter doesn't really seem all that different from the original, but I'm going to be veering off from my original story a lot within the next few chapter so I hope you guys like it! <strong>

**Please review and tell me if you like it! **


	2. A While

When Harley finally woke up she could tell from the sweltering heat that had gathered in the tent that it was probably midday, maybe around twelve or one o'clock. She threw the itchy blankets that had gathered around her waist off of her before sitting up, wincing as a sharp pain shot through her leg.

She examined her injury, finding herself without pants and although she had no recollection of how they came off or who took them off, she didn't bother with any feelings of embarrassment that she would have normally had.

There was an ugly burn that now defaced her tan thigh, it was blistering and still red, but there wasn't any sign of infection as far as she could tell and she would take that as a good sign. She grabbed a roll of bandages that had been placed at her bedside and started to wrap it around her thigh, being careful not to wrap it too tight or too loose.

She found her pants folded at the end of the bed and she grabbed them, shaking them out, finding them relatively clean, cleaner than they had been when she first arrived at least, although there was still a brownish coloring from the blood stains that ran up the length of her left pant leg. She shimmied into her jeans, being cautious of her wound.

The grey T-shirt she wore now barely went past her ribcage due to her having to rip off the lower half in order to make a tourniquet for herself. Harley scratched her head, looking around the tent for her and Anna's bags which she spotted in the corner, right next to the guitar.

Shuffling through it, she came out with a red tank top and quickly switched her torn T-shirt for the nearly pristine tank top. Her combat boots were the next article she put on, tucking the ends of her jeans into them before she laced them up. She fixed her short, messy hair back into a ponytail before grabbing her leather jacket and exiting the tent.

The Georgian sun was nearly blinding and it radiated from high in the sky, but the light breeze that blew through the camp made the heat a bit more bearable which was a nice change in pace from the usual humidity that permeated throughout most of the Summer days.

"You're awake!" Harley turned to the source of the voice and vaguely remembered seeing his face last night, "I thought you would be out for another day or so."

Harley gave him a small smile, "Ain't one for lazin' around all day, m'fraid."

He returned the smile before offering her a hand, "I'm Glenn, by the way, I uh, I'm the one that performed invasive surgery on you last night."

Harley grabbed his hand and shook it, "Harley." She said introducing herself before laughing at his joke, "I knew I remembered your face, I remember almost punching your lights out."

He just smiled a bit before changing the topic of conversation, "We saved you some food, didn't know whether or not you'd be up, but we figured you would be hungry when you did."

"Thanks," Harley said as she followed him towards the fire pit they had constructed, "It's been a while since I've ran into people like you." When Glenn gave her a confused look, she elaborate, "Folk ain't really too kind to strangers now-a-days, people are more likely ta shoot ya and take what little ya have 'fore they'd even think ta save your life."

Glenn shook his head, "We aren't like that." He grabbed a plate of food that had been placed on one of the empty seats and handed it to her, motioning for her to sit down before joining her, "We can't just turn a blind eye when someone's in trouble."

Harley began devouring the food but paused long enough to give him a weak smile, "Wish everyone had that mentality."

The two sat together, Glenn making pleasant conversation with Harley as she ate and Harley found herself liking the boy more and more as he told her about his life before the world became zombie infested.

"So, pizza delivery boy, huh?" Harley asked and Glenn nodded, "Really aimin' high with your aspirations."

"You know what they say, go big or go home." Glenn laughed, "There really wasn't much in the job market for a kid who dropped out of college."

Harley snorted, "I almost dropped out my sophomore year, didn't think I was cut out for the whole college thing. I had one year left before I graduated, though, and I didn' have a goddamn clue as to what I was gonna do when I got out." She took a swig of bottled water, "Ain't really much you can do with a music degree, shoulda listened to my dad when he told me to go into medicine and not waste my time with music."

"Not like that matters much anymore." Glenn said, his eyes taking on a distant look as their reminiscing of a simpler time came to an end and they were gripped by reality.

"S'pose you're right."

* * *

><p>Anna nearly toppled Harley over when she spotted her friend up and hobbling around. She shrieked her name and bolted towards the woman who was already bracing herself for impact. Luckily for Harley, Glenn was right behind her and held her steady as the young girl attached herself to Harley's waist.<p>

"I'm so glad you're okay." Harley heard Anna mumble into the fabric of her shirt and Harley just smiled, smoothing down the girl's hair.

Harley pulled away from the girl, "Where have you been?"

Anna grinned excitedly, "Lori and Carol let me sit in with Carl and Sophia on their school lessons!"

Harley mumbled something about 'weird ass kids' before shrugging her jacket on, earning a comment from Glenn, "How can you wear that thing in the dead of Summer?"

"Heat don't bother me much." Harley told him.

Having been born and raised in Alabama, she'd grown used to the overpowering heat and moving to the neighboring state of Georgia which was just as hot as Alabama didn't make much of a difference to Harley. Hell, anything below 80 degrees and she was freezing.

"We should probably introduce you to everyone." Glenn said, "People have been asking about you."

Harley's eyebrow rose with curiosity, but said nothing else as Anna held onto her hand providing a bit of support as Harley limped after Glenn.

* * *

><p>"Everyone, this is Harley..." Lori trailed off as she realized she didn't know the young woman's last name.<p>

"Davison." Harley replied blandly, already predicting the snickers that were going around the group.

"Like the motorcycle?" Lori's son, Carl, piped up.

"Yup... like the motorcycle." Her voice was bitter and the others took it as a sign that she had heard that one a time or two before.

It was a bit overwhelming for Harley being around all these people. She was used to Anna and all of Anna's quirks just as Anna was used to her, but now that the two were apart of this larger group, Harley felt intimidated. She didn't know these people. She didn't know what they were like or who they were before the end of the world.

Then again, she didn't know if she would be sticking around long enough to find out.

* * *

><p>It hadn't been long after her general introduction that Harley became reacquainted with the Dixon brothers. Merle had slunk up to her, tossing an arm around her shoulder and called her something along the lines of 'Sugar Tits'.<p>

Harley did her best to ignore the man and pry his arm off of her shoulder, but when he made a crude gesture with his tongue, Harley's fist quickly familiarized itself with Merle's face.

"Shit girl! Ya punch like a man!" Merle exclaimed as he held his bleeding nose. He should have been angry with the girl, but ain't many women around here that would be bold enough to sock him in the face when he got too handsy.

Or it could've been those pills he popped a few hours ago that seemed to have mellowed him out a bit.

Harley scowled as she shook her hand, feeling it already begin to swell from the collision, "Stay the fuck away from me, ya dumb redneck bastard." With that she stalked away.

Merle settled down next to his brother at the tailgate of his truck, stuffing a piece of toilet paper into his bleeding nostril, "I like me a girl who's a bit on the _wild_ side." Merle grinned and Daryl just shook his head.

"Shut the fuck up, Merle." Daryl grumbled as he too walked away.

* * *

><p>Harley noticed that the others in the camp were taken with Anna and her impeccable charm. She sat with the women of the group, who were busying themselves with making dinner out of the squirrel that Daryl and Merle had caught the day before while some of the others were folding laundry, including Harley.<p>

"Little social butterfly, ain't she?" Lori commented as she cut up some squirrel.

Harley gave the woman a smile, "It's just been me and her for a long while now, she's probably happy she don't gotta stick around me all the time. Must be nice for her to have some kids her own age to play with."

"Sophia seems to have taken a liking to her." Carol, an older woman with short gray hair said as she watched her daughter and Anna playing dolls together along with Morales' daughter, "She your sister?"

Harley smiled at the question, "Nah, sorta picked her up along the way."

Lori frowned, "What happened to her parents?"

Harley shrugged, "Walker food, I guess. She was locked in her kitchen pantry and when I found her there was nothing but two jugs of water that were almost empty and a can opener with a lot of empty cans. I couldn't just leave her there, y'know? She's only eight, she wouldn't have survived that much longer if I didn' take her wit me."

"Most people woulda just left her there." Carol mentioned.

Harley paused a moment, before replying, "Most people wouldn' 'ave saved me from bleedin' out, they woulda let the walkers get me. Ain't much good left in the world, but at least there's some."

The other women nodded their head in agreement before the conversation was changed, "Where're ya from Harley?" Lori asked.

"Originally from Hurtsboro, Alabama." Harley told her, "But, my father and I moved to Athens to be closer to my brother 'bout five years ago."

"An Alabama girl, huh?" Jacqui said playfully as she finished folding a shirt.

Harley gave the woman a grin, "Born and raised." She may have lived in Georgia for nearly five years, but Alabama would always be her home, even if there wasn't much of a home to go back to now, "Ya'll from around here?"

"Kentucky, actually." Lori told her, "Came to Atlanta to find safety, didn't realize we were walking into a death trap."

Harley nodded, she had heard about what happened in Atlanta from the two Spanish guys who had stolen the guns her father had given her nearly a week after the outbreak.

* * *

><p><em>It was almost dusk when Harley had settled in the bathroom gas station where she'd be spending the night. Not exactly the most ideal place to be sleeping and under any other circumstances, Harley probably would've been mortified to be sleeping on the cold, wet tiles of the bathroom floor, but desperate times called for desperate measures and in the five days that Harley had been on her own, she's found out that there was no place quite as secure and as easy to come by as the bathroom of a gas station.<em>

_ The window, if it had one was almost always high up on the wall and almost impossible for anyone to get through let alone one of those zombies. The doors were usually heavy, hard to open and besides the normal lock for the door, there was also a deadbolt that could only be opened from the inside or by someone with the key. _

_ The key to this particular lock had been around the neck of the gas station attendant who had tried to gnaw on Harley's arm, but had received a knife to the forehead instead. _

_ The past five days had been smooth sailing. She had run into a limited amount of walkers, nothing she couldn't take care of with her father's hunting knife. She'd found a place to stay each night, sometimes it was a gas station bathroom, sometimes she holed herself up inside a car and prayed that she wouldn't wake up surrounded by walkers._

_ She hadn't run into anyone alive though. It was hard to believe how fast the disease had spread. It had been just a week since the first news report and in that time it seemed as though the entire world had gone to shit._

_ So, when she was sitting in that gas station bathroom and heard the sound of talking, __**people **__talking, she nearly cried she was so happy. She hopped up from her place on the floor and climbed up onto the toilet in order to see out the foggy glass of the window. She could barely make out two men standing at the gas pumps, swearing about the lack of gas and how they wouldn't be able to make it so much as a mile before they would run out._

_ Had Harley known then, what she knew now, she would have never left that bathroom. She'd have stayed in there and waited for them to move on. But, she hadn't encountered anyone and she didn't know just how people had changed due to the circumstances they were presented with._

_ She barely even stepped out of bathroom before a gun was pointed at her head and she was ordered to hand over her bag. With nothing else to do than comply, she watched as they sifted through the guns and ammo her father had given her, taking nearly everything from her bag but two knives and a handgun. She was surprised they even left her with that._

_ One of the men had apologized, told her it was nothing personal, it was just something they had to do while the other guy just snorted before asking her where she was heading, like it had even mattered anymore._

_ "Heard there was a safe zone in Atlanta." She mumbled. _

_ Two days ago, while she was cooped up in one of the cars for the night, she'd put the radio on, hoping maybe she'd hear some news, but there was nothing but an emergency broadcast system sounding out the supposed "safe zones" throughout the country. The one nearest to her would have been Atlanta, so that's where she headed._

_ "Chica, you must be late on the uptake, ain't no more 'safe zones', Atlanta was a bust." The one who had apologized told her, "Best you keep on moving, ain't safe to stay in one place for too long."_

_ And with that said, the two men departed, hopping in their vehicle and driving off to the next gas station down the road, hoping to find some more gas._

_ Harley wasn't quite sure what she would do now. Perhaps she'd have to take the man's advice and keep moving._

* * *

><p>Harley may have been pissed about them taking her guns, but at least she didn't head into Atlanta completely oblivious to the fact that it was overrun. She would probably have died in Atlanta even if she did have all of those guns.<p>

Andrea snapped Harley out of her reverie when she placed a hand on her shoulder, "Why don't you go get some more rest and have Glenn look at your wound, we'll send Anna to get you when dinner is ready."

"I'd feel real useless if I went and rested while you all were doin' work." Harley said as she placed a folded shirt into the little makeshift basket in front of her.

The other women just shook their heads and smiled, "You got shot yesterday, I think that's a good enough reason to take a bit of a breather." Lori said and they shooed her away.

Harley hobbled over to Glenn who was sifting through some of the supplies he had picked up on his latest expedition into the city, "Hey Glenn." She called out.

Glenn turned around, "How you holdin' up, gimpy?" He asked with a grin.

Harley gave a shrug, "Good for now, you mind takin' a look at it?"

"I'm not a doctor or anything, but I can give you a thorough examination." He gave her a playful wink and led her to the tent where she had woken up in.

She unbuttoned her pants as Glenn closed the flap to the tent to give them a bit more privacy. He looked away as she dropped her pants to the floor and sat down on the cot.

"m'fraid I ain't got no modesty anymore, Glenn. 'sides, you already saw me without pants on, ain't much of a difference now, is it?"

Glenn contemplated her words for a second before smiling, "Guess you're right, besides, who has time for modesty now-a-days?" He unwrapped the bandages on her thigh, grimacing a bit at the sight.

"It bad, doc?"

"I don't think so, just looks like it hurts like a bitch." Glenn said as he took out a tube of bacitracin from one of the bags near the cot and started to apply it to the wound, "Dunno if this is gonna do much good, but hey, might as well give it a go."

"Ain't never been shot before," Harley mused, "Gotta say, it was a life experience."

Glenn snorted, "More like a near death experience."

Harley just laughed, "You wouldn't be wrong."

When he finished wrapping her leg, he stood up, "You better get some sleep, don't want you straining yourself. It would probably do more harm than good."

Harley nodded, laying down and pulling the scratchy blanket onto her bare legs despite the heat in the tent, "Hey Glenn?"

He turned back just as he was about to leave, "Yeah?"

"Who's tent is this anyway? I feel bad, probably kicked someone outta their place."

Glenn shook his head with a smile on his face, "It's mine. You don't have to worry, I told Anna that you and her could stay in here for as long as you want, I'll just stay in the RV with Dale."

"Don't have to worry about us stayin' for long, prob'ly be outta yer hair once my leg heals up." Harley mumbled as she rolled over in the cot, turning away from Glenn.

Glenn didn't say anything else, just stood at the entrance of the tent, staring at the woman laying there, not quite understanding why she would want to leave the camp, especially after getting shot.

He'd have to talk to Dale about it. Dale was always good with these things.

* * *

><p>Anna crept into the tent where Harley was sleeping, pausing for a moment to stare at the woman who had been her savior. Harley was her everything from the moment she found Anna in that pantry. Anna looked up to her and when you looked up to someone, you thought they were invincible, nothing could ever hurt them.<p>

Until something did.

Anna was not unaware of what death was and what it meant. Her father had explained it to her when her grandfather died when she was five and again when her grandmother died two years later. She knew there was no coming back and while she had accepted she wouldn't see her parents again, if she lost Harley, she wouldn't know what to do.

Harley had been her rock for weeks now. Without her, any sense of normalcy and permanence would be lost to Anna. She would be gripped with the cold, hard truth that nothing was indestructible. You grow close to people, you start to care for them, and then without warning they are ripped away from you. It was something an eight year old should never have to face.

Anna slinked to the side of the bed, "Harley." She shook the woman, receiving a swat to the hand as a response which she only smiled at as she shook her again, "Harley, wake up. It's time for dinner." Harley rolled over to face the girl, her hair sticking up at odd angles due to the sweat and grime that had built up since she'd last bathed. Anna giggled at the sight, "C'mon, everyone's waitin'."

Harley grumbled a bit before reluctantly sitting up, motioning for Anna to get her pants which she did. She pulled her pants back on and put on her boots, leaving them unlaced due to laziness. She left her jacket in the tent as she followed Anna out to the circle of people who had gathered around the fire.

It had grown dark out while Harley was sleeping and it was now nearly pitch black with nothing but the glow of the fire to illuminate the darkness. As Harley sat down in the seat Glenn had saved for her next to him, she was met with pleasant greetings which she returned with a sleepy half-smile.

Dinner seemed like a blur to Harley, whose mind was still fuzzy from sleep and she tried to keep up with the polite conversation but more often than not she found herself falling silent as she quickly ate her dinner.

When she tried to help clean up after, she was shooed away once more by the women and she walked away, grumbling something about overbearing women and feeling useless.

* * *

><p>Harley found herself sitting on top of the RV with Dale, helping him keep watch which besides the part of actually getting up onto the RV didn't require much exertion of energy on her part.<p>

Dale was a nice old man, she'd determined. He talked to her about his wife, Irma, who had succumbed to cancer before the apocalypse and how he took the RV and decided to travel the country.

The conversation took a sudden turn when Dale said, "Y'know, Glenn told me you plan on leaving once your leg is healed."

Harley's eyebrow quirked up, "Yeah, don't want to impose on anyone, 'sides, I think Anna and I are better off on our own."

Dale wasn't convinced, "You sure that's a good idea? After what happened yesterday?" He gave her a small smile, "Y'know, if you wanna stay, you're more than welcomed to, besides," He glanced down at the group gathered near the fire, "I think Anna is happy here."

Harley followed his gaze and her eyes landed on Anna who was animatedly telling a story about how Harley had saved them from a group of walkers and she was pretty sure she heard Anna say something along the lines of there being 'a zillion of them'.

She stared at the girl who was smiling and laughing and there was a long pause before she spoke, "Yeah. She is happy."

Dale gave a grin as he looked away from the girl and back out into the darkened woods, knowing he'd hit the woman's soft spot when he mentioned the little girl. He didn't think they'd be leaving anytime soon.

* * *

><p>"Hey Harley," Anna whispered, hoping the woman was still awake and when she heard a grunt, she continued, "Can we stay here?"<p>

When Harley didn't reply, Anna thought she might've fallen asleep, but after a drawn out silence, she heard her speak, "I don't know."

Anna gave a sigh, snuggling deeper into her blankets and pillow, something she hadn't had in quite some time, "I'm tired of running around. It'd be nice to stay in one place for a while."

Harley pursed her lips before giving a sigh herself, "Yeah, for a while." And she couldn't see through the darkness, but she could almost _hear_ Anna's grin.

* * *

><p><strong>Here's the revised second chapter for you guys! I really hope you guys like the revisions I'm making because I really want to add more dimension into my story. The third chapter should be up by the end of the week. I'm on Spring Break right now so I'm hoping to be able to knock out a chapter or two since I have a bunch of free time.<strong>

**Please review and tell me what you think! **


	3. Stir Crazy

Harley grumbled as she got out of bed, no longer being able to ignore the throbbing pain in her bladder that ached for relief. She pulled on her jeans and her black boots before stuffing her gun in the waist band of her jeans and grabbing a flashlight from her bag.

Had it not been so late she probably would have gone to use the bathroom in the Winnibago, but she didn't want to risk waking up Amy or Andrea who were both fast asleep by now.

"Hey, where ya going?" A whisper came from above once Harley had crawled out of the tent next to the RV.

She looked up, seeing the faint outline of a figure with a baseball cap, "Bathroom." She told Glenn, "I'll be right back."

Glenn nodded, "Be careful," He glanced down at the gun tucked in her waist ban, "Don't use it unless you have to."

"Gotcha." Harley mumbled before shuffling off into the darkness of the woods.

While roaming the state of Georgia, Harley tended to stay away from the heavily wooded areas, especially those that she wasn't familiar with from the times she spent hunting with her father and brother. She mostly stayed to the outskirts of the woods, just enough to be away from any major highways, but not deep enough into the woods where they'd end up lost. Besides the imminent danger of zombies, there were plenty of other threatening creatures lurking through the woods of Georgia that Harley would avoid at all costs.

Despite that though, she felt at peace in the woods and she was reminded of the childhood she had spent primarily in the woods, learning how to track and hunt, something she never thought would be of much use in the real world. Hell, what she wouldn't give right now to be sitting up in a deer stand in twenty degree weather fighting with her brother over who would get to shoot the first buck that crossed their path.

* * *

><p>It was a pretty well-known fact around camp that Daryl Dixon rarely slept. At least not since the start of the zombie apocalypse. It wasn't uncommon to see him sitting up all night sharpening his knives or making new bolts for his crossbow.<p>

Tonight, he was making new bolts to make up for a few of the ones he'd broken while hunting the day before. He probably would've attempted to try and get at least an hour or two worth of sleep tonight had it not been for the fight him and Merle had a couple of hours ago.

He was still pissed off so any effort to get some sleep would go to waste with his mind reeling and pestering him and it didn't help that his brother's obnoxious snoring could be heard from inside his tent. It almost pissed him off even more, knowing Merle could snort a line of coke, shoot his mouth off and within a couple of hours pass out from the high.

"Stupid bastard." He grumbled as he finished his second bolt of the night.

A twig snapping in the woods to his right brought him out of his thoughts and he looked up, body on high alert and he'd already replaced the bolt in his hands with a hunting knife and stood up. His body relaxed when he saw who emerged from the woods.

"Wha' the hell are ya doin', girl?" He asked the younger girl who stood with a broken flashlight in her hand.

"Went to pee," She said, "Dropped the flashlight and the bulb broke." She indicated to the cracked flashlight, "Followed the light of your fire back." He said nothing in response, instead he sat back down and continued on with his ministrations, "What're you doin' up, anyway?" She asked.

"Can't sleep." He told her, keeping his response a bit terse.

Without any sort of invitation, she sat down in the seat across from his, the one usually reserved for Merle, "That ain't good ya know." She told him, but otherwise dropped the subject, "What were you doin' before this?" She paused a moment, realizing her question might not have been all that clear, "Y'know, before all this crazy, zombie shit happened."

Daryl hesitated for a moment, if all of his energy wasn't focused on being pissed off at Merle, he'd probably be annoyed at the girl for lingering too long, but he figured he'd humor her a bit, "Was in construction for a while, did pretty much whatever would pay the bills."

Harley nodded, "Where ya from?"

"Bogart."

Her eyebrows perked up, "Really? Clarke County?" He nodded in response, "Small world." She said with a small smile on her face, "I'm from Athens. We're practically neighbors."

Daryl snorted in response, "Shouldn't you be sleepin'?"

Harley shrugged, "All I've been doin' is sleepin'. Makes a person feel pretty useless."

Daryl studied the girl; she was young, probably one of the youngest in the camp besides the brats that ran around. She didn't look that young though between the dirt and the bags under her eyes. She looked worn and tired. Daryl could only imagine what he looked like, probably something that crawled out of a cat's ass.

She was different though, a spitfire if anything. Not like any of the other women around camp that played the good, obedient wife. He couldn't imagine she'd sit around much longer and be content with folding laundry and he could see it being a problem for the rest of the women in the camp when she decides enough is enough.

"Ya know how to make a bolt?"

* * *

><p>The sun was peeking up over the horizon when Daryl stirred awake, his back aching from the awkward position he'd fallen asleep in and the blanket that was draped across him did nothing but make him hot and itchy.<p>

The fire that had been blazing last night was now nothing but a simmering pile of ash indicating that someone had put it out and since he couldn't remember doing it last night before he fell asleep he assumed it was the girl who was now no where in sight.

The last thing he recalls before he fell asleep was talking to her about hunting and guns and then he conked out like a little baby. He felt the hot sensation of embarrassment spread through him. He tried to force the feeling away as he gathered the bolts that they'd made last night.

He must've been more tired than he thought.

* * *

><p>Harley once again was folding laundry as she sat with the rest of the women at camp. She was already beginning to find this task a bit tiresome as she usually did with household chores like this.<p>

She was never expected to do "women's work" back when the world was right, even with her mother dead and gone, the domestic duties of keeping the house clean never fell to her.

Her father was always the one to do those jobs. It was odd; seeing the big, grizzly man that was Jonathan Davison slave over a hot stove and then scrub at the dirty dishes until his calloused hands were like prunes.

Harley and her older brother were always treated equally. If Dylan was allowed to do something, so was Harley. She never grew up with the mentality that she couldn't do something just because she was a female.

She was probably alive today because of that.

* * *

><p>Harley suspected that Lori and Carol could tell she was beginning to go a bit stir crazy from all of the laundry folding and sleeping because they assigned her the task of teaching the kids their school lesson today.<p>

She never considered herself much of a children kind of person. She spent one summer working at a day camp while she was still in high school and found most of them to be snotty and obnoxious little shits. Since then, she's been a bit put off by kids for the most part with the exception of Anna.

Carl and Sophia, however, were beginning to grow on her a bit, well, Sophia at least.

Sophia was quiet for the most part, but extremely bright. She did most of the work in the book without any help and only asked Harley to go over the work once she was done.

Carl, on the other hand, had a question about everything.

"So, why does two plus two equal four?"

Harley stared blankly at him while Anna and Sophia giggled to themselves. Lori and Carol who were sitting by the fire, cooking lunch, couldn't help but laugh at the boy's inquiries.

Instead of ignoring him, like Harley had been doing for the past hour, she leaned back in her seat, placed her pencil down and folded her hands together, "In life, we are presented with universal truths that we accept without questionin' 'cause someone, a long, long time ago, came up with a theory that just _seems _to make sense."

Carl returned her blank stare before speaking, "So, is this one of those, 'It is what it is because I say so', speeches?"

She ruffled his hair and grinned, "Now you're gettin' it."

"Sure got a way with kids, Harley." Lori called out.

"It's one of my many talents."

* * *

><p>It's been a week since Anna and Harley arrived and there was a slow progression of a routine forming. Anna mostly played with the other children, for the first time in a long while she was able to be a kid for once, putting any worries of walkers behind her. She seemed happy, despite the odd circumstances.<p>

Harley's leg was healing nicely and the limp was no longer as noticeable when she walked, it would only be a week or so before the wound is completely healed. After a bit of persuasion, she managed to get Shane to let her take on a watch duty which made her a bit less antsy, however, she knew it was only a matter of time before she'd be itching to go out hunting.

She never could stay in one place for too long.

"Ya look like yer losin' yer mind." Daryl's voice rang out from beside her where he was cleaning his crossbow.

Harley had made it a habit of joining Daryl during the wee hours of the morning when he couldn't sleep. Helping him with whatever task he'd set out for that night along with providing some polite conversation which usually centered around hunting or weaponry. It was never too personal. No talking of the past, probably due to the fact neither of them wanted to talk about the loss they suffered at the hands of the apocalypse.

Although, Harley wondered what kind of man Daryl was before all of this happened, whether he was the same introverted, rugged redneck or not. Maybe he was, perhaps he was just a bit cleaner.

"Don't know how much longer I can take of this foldin' laundry bullshit." She grumbled as she folded a pair of pants, her hands seem to have been programmed to fold by now and she didn't even have to think about it anymore.

Daryl glanced down at the girl, "Come huntin' wit me tomorrow." It wasn't so much of a request as it was a demand.

Her eyebrow perked up, "Ya sure Merle ain't gonna mind?"

Daryl gave a shrug, "Bastard's been on a binge for the past week, prolly won't even notice I'm gone."

He's barely even talked to Merle over the past week, knowing anything he'd say would result in a fight. Merle wasn't a reasonable man to begin with and the addition of drugs only made it worse. For the most part everyone even Daryl, stayed out of his way.

Harley nodded, "Yeah, be nice to get the hell outta this place." She said nonchalantly, not letting on to how excited she really was.

* * *

><p>"Now, Harley, I don't think that's a good idea."<p>

Harley looked up at Shane, annoyance flooding her eyes, "And why's that deputy?"

Shane's hands found their way to his waist as he shifted his feet, his face getting closer to Harley's as he spoke in a hushed voice, "Ya don't know what Dixon is capable of. I ain't comfortable sending you out there _alone_ with him is all."

Harley huffed indignantly, "Ya ain't responsible for me, Walsh. I ain't one of your little lost ducklings that needs your protection. Been takin' care of myself for a long time. I'm not gonna start relyin' on other people now."

Shane pursed his lips as he ran a hand through his hair, "You're putting me in a tough place here, Harley." He looked down into her unwavering eyes before sighing, "Just watch your back while you're out there."

She nodded and spun around, walking in the opposite direction. She didn't blame Shane. He was just trying to do what he thinks is right, but Harley was stubborn, quite possibly more stubborn than even Shane Walsh and if she set her mind to do something, she was gonna do it.

Shane stared after her, hoping he didn't make a mistake by letting her go with the younger Dixon brother. He'd never had a problem with Daryl. He kept to himself mostly, took care of his brother when he was being a pain in the ass, but Shane was a firm believer in guilt by association even if it was through blood.

As a hand slid into his, he was forced out of his thoughts, smiling down at the woman hanging onto him before he tugged at her hand, luring her into the woods for a little TLC.

* * *

><p>Harley packed her bag with a few provisions enough to last her a day of hunting as Anna sat on the bed, fiddling with a doll they'd found a couple of weeks ago in an abandoned house.<p>

"Ya sure ya wanna go?" Anna asked Harley for the fifteenth time since they'd been sitting in the tent together.

Harley gave a sigh as she stopped packing the bag to look at Anna whose vision was still focused on the doll, "Anna, I'm gonna be fine." When Anna said nothing, just continued to fidget around with the doll, Harley gently took the doll from her hands and placed it on the bed beside her before taking Anna's tiny hands in her own, "Why don't ya want me to go out huntin'?"

Anna bit her lip, "Just don't want you to leave me is all."

She wasn't going to tell Harley the real reason is because she didn't like the way the man looked at Harley. Anna caught him staring at her often; during meals, when Harley was on top of the RV during her watch, when she was doing the daily lessons with the kids.

Harley laughed a bit, "I'm gonna come back. Ain't nothin' gonna stop me from comin' back, y'know that right?"

Anna nodded, looking down at her hands that were covered by Harley's own calloused ones, "Yeah, I know."

Harley grinned at the girl, tapping her chin with her finger, "Chin up, kiddo. I'll be back before you know it." She stood up from her kneeling position and grabbed her bag before heading out of the tent, leaving Anna behind with a frown on her face.

* * *

><p><strong>Here's the third revised chapter for you guys! I hope you like it! Not a lot going on, just a bit of bonding time for Harley with a few of the other campers including Daryl ;)<strong>

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! You guys are so wonderful!**

**To CMRR: Thank you so much! I don't feel the need to place Harley at the center of everything because it's just not realistic. That and she probably doesn't give a shit about half of what goes on xD And I totally get the eye-roll about the last name, although it is Davison and not Davidson lolol. I couldn't think of a good last name for her, so I thought I'd make it a play off of Harley Davidson, just to be that guy. **

**Please review! I'd love to hear what you guys think of the changes I'm making to the story :)**

**And as always, if you want, follow me on Tumblr! My URL is bbyjesus **


	4. Dad

Even with the shade of the woods around them, there was no escaping the horrible humidity of the Georgian Summer. Not even an hour into their excursion and sweat was already beginning to pool at Harley's brow.

"Never thought I'd miss air conditionin' so much." She grumbled as she followed after Daryl who was busy tracking a rabbit he'd caught the trail not too long ago.

"Yer tellin' me." He mumbled back, barely loud enough for her to hear, "'m sweatin' like a whore in church."

Harley snorted, "Ya got a way with words, Dixon."

Daryl shot her a small smirk over his shoulder, "Coulda been a poet if I had tried hard enough."

"Regular E.E. Cummings, you are." Sarcasm laced her voice.

"If ya try hard enough I will."

Harley's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion before her mouth formed a small 'o' in realization, "You're filthy, Dixon, absolutely filthy."

* * *

><p>The sun was low in the sky when the pair decided to set up camp for the night. They'd make their way back to the others in the morning, but trekking through the woods at night was never a good idea and the addition of flesh-eating zombies to the world made it all the more dangerous.<p>

For most of the day, they had kept to themselves, every so often one of them would make a comment to which the other would respond before a comfortable quiet took over.

The fire they lit was low and weak, but just strong enough so Harley could cook two of the squirrel they caught today for dinner. While she was cooking, Daryl had taken to cleaning the bloody arrows they'd used today.

Harley didn't really mind the silence so much. After being in the company of a chatty eight-year-old for the past few months, the silence was almost a welcomed change.

* * *

><p>They sat around the fire, Harley had wrapped herself in her father's old leather jacket due to the briskness of the summer night. Daryl didn't seem too bothered by the chill in the air, although it didn't go unnoticed by Harley that he had scooted himself a bit closer to the fire when a light breeze floated through their campsite.<p>

Had this been any ordinary hunting trip, they probably would be trying to get some sleep right about now, but a peaceful sleep was hard to come by nowadays and no sleep was better than a restless sleep.

"How old are ya?"

Harley's eyebrows shot up at his question that came from out of the blue and she stared at him a moment before answer, "Twenty-one," She paused, "Hell, didn't even get to enjoy the taste of legal beer before all this went down..."

Daryl smirked a bit, "It don't taste as good, trust me."

A small chuckle came out of Harley's mouth, "How 'bout you? How old are you?"

"Thirty-six."

Harley grinned, not being able to resist a small joke at the expense of Daryl, "You're practically an old man."

She narrowly dodged the stick that was thrown at her as a response to the statement, "This old man can still kick your ass, ya brat." He shook his head as her body shook with laughter, "Didn' anyone ever tell ya ta respect yer elders?"

"'Ain't gotta respect no one that don't respect you', s'what my pops always used to say. 'Gotta earn respect', he said, 'Don't no one earn respect just by being an old bastard'." She quoted her father with a small smile on her face, "Wasn't too good with the English language, but my dad was a regular philosopher."

Daryl snorted as he poked at the fire with a stray stick, "Sounds like my kind of guy."

"He was the best kinda guy." Her smile shifted downwards and she found herself staring into space, "Best dad anyone could ask for, really."

Daryl didn't say anything for a few seconds, but curiosity got the best of him, "He gone?"

"Yeah," She nodded, "Lost him at the beginning. Saved my life, but he got killed for it." She frowned as a tight feeling welled up in her chest.

Daryl eyed the young woman, "Ya wanna talk about it?"

"Maybe another time."

* * *

><p><em>Harley collapsed onto her bed and let out a sigh of relief, happy to finally be home from college for her Spring Break which also, luckily, coincided with her twenty-first birthday. She snuggled against her pillow, taking in what it felt like to be back home. She could hear her brother outside mowing the lawn and her father was clanking about in the kitchen, cooking up some sort of stew for her homecoming dinner, something he did for both Harley and her brother whenever they came home from college.<em>

_ Sitting up, she grabbed for the television remote and flicked on the television, groaning as she found most of the channels to be broadcasting news about the latest epidemic to hit the United States. _

_ "A few people get the sniffles and the world launches into goddamn Armageddon." She turned the TV right back off and threw the remote to the other side of her bed._

_ Flopping back down, she snuggled into her pillow, her eyes scanning her room until they landed on the picture frame on her nightstand. _

_ A younger and much pudgier version of herself was sitting in a woman's lap, their features were practically identical, although Harley had to admit, she inherited her father's broad nose. _

_ About twelve years ago, when Harley was nine, her mother had been diagnosed with lung cancer. Over twenty years of smoking a pack a day will do that to you. After a two year battle with the disease, her mom died, choking in her sleep, gasping for air that wouldn't come._

_ To be honest, Harley barely remembered it; it could be because she was too young or maybe her subconscious forced those memories from her mind as a way to cope._

_ If it weren't for the numerous family photographs strewn throughout the house, she probably wouldn't even remember what her mother looked like. Hell, the sound of her voice has been gone from her memories for years now. _

_ Of course, there were things that she remembered, little things; when her mother took her to her first piano lesson, when she picked her up early from school so they could go to an amusement park together._

_ But, Harley knew that had it not been for those photographs, the face of her mother in all of those memories would be nothing more than a blur._

_ Sighing, Harley rolled over and closed her eyes, letting sleep take over._

* * *

><p><em> Harley awoke with a jolt when she heard a crash from outside, almost like a car collision. If she didn't know any better she'd have thought it was just something she heard in her dream, but the billowing smoke coming from outside her window indicated it was much more than a simple dream.<em>

_ She grabbed for her father's old leather jacket at the end of her bed as she felt a chill run up her spine and shrugged it on. She moved groggily to the window, trying to shake the sleep from her system. _

_ "What the..." Her sentence trailed off as she saw a car flipped over against her neighbor's tree. A person was kneeling own in front of the passenger's side of the car and it looked as though they were digging at something within the car through the broken window. When their hands came back out from the car, they were covered in blood and filled with what Harley could only guess were the entrails of another human being, "Oh God..." She felt nausea take over her when she saw the person shove the content of their hands into their mouth, "Oh God." She repeated as she took a step away from the window._

_ A horrifying scream ripped through the house and it took her a moment to realize who the scream belonged to, "Dylan?!" She rushed out of her room, nearly tripping over her own two feet as she did._

_ When she got downstairs she almost toppled backwards, trying to back away from the scene in her kitchen. A monstrous version of their elderly neighbor was ripping apart the flesh on her brother's shoulder with his teeth while her brother was howling in pain, desperately trying to push the creature off of him._

_ There was the sound of a shotgun going off and the creature slumped to the ground beside her brother, its head nothing more than a mass of blood. _

_ Harley scrambled towards her brother, kicking away the dead creature. Her father handed the shotgun to Harley before kneeling down besides Dylan, his large hands clamped on her brother's shoulders hopelessly trying to stop the bleeding._

_ "D-dad." Harley croaked out, her throat tightening as she tried to fight off the tears that were already streaming down her face. _

_ Her brother was gone. There was nothing, but emptiness in his brown eyes; no life, no spark, nothing._

_ "Dad..." Harley repeated, a little louder as she noticed a figure appear in their doorway. It was a person, or rather what was left a person. The horrible lacerations to its face and the rotting flesh all over its body made it look like something from out of a horror movie._

_ "We... we have to go." When she didn't get a response she grabbed her father's shoulder, "Dad!" _

_ Her father shakily stood up as the creature began to stagger closer to them, reaching out as though it was going to attack them._

_ It took Harley a split second to aim the shotgun and another to fire, sending a bullet straight through the thing's head._

_ "C'mon." Her father grunted as he dug through the kitchen drawers, knowing he had placed a handgun somewhere around kitchen, but in his frenzy he couldn't remember where._

_ Harley glanced back at her brother, who laid in a pool of his own blood, cold and unmoving. She choked back a sob as she forced herself to look away and help her father look for the gun._

_ Her father pulled out a gun from one of the drawers as well as a box of ammo and handed it to her, "Put these in a bag."_

_ There was more commotion outside of her house as she saw through the windows that even more of the creatures were beginning to converge on their house, probably being lured there due to the gunshots._

_ Harley grabbed her old messenger's bag she had left in the kitchen which was filled with notebooks for school. She quickly emptied it out and put the box of bullets into her bag as well as the hunting knife her father handed to her and anything else her father gave her as he went through every drawer and cabinet of the kitchen._

_ Her father was a hunter, so they weren't short on guns or knives and he often kept them around the house in various places mostly due to his paranoia that someone was going to break into the house one day and he wouldn't be able to make it to his gun safe in the basement in time._

_ "Upstairs." Her father ordered as the creatures began to stagger into her house. _

_ She paused for a moment, watching as her father tore away the stove in the kitchen, breaking the gas line, "What are you..."_

_ "Upstairs!"_

_ He didn't have to tell her a third time because Harley's combat boots were stomping against the stairs, her father on her tail with the creatures following closely behind._

_ Her father ordered her into her room and closed the door behind them. He took her by the shoulders and looked her carefully in the eye, "Listen Harley," He said, "You're going to run. You're going to climb out that window and run as far away from here as possible. You're not going to look back, you're just going to keep running, you got that?"_

_ Harley couldn't do anything but nod as her father took her face in his hands, "I love you more than anything Harley, remember that, okay?"_

_ The tears rushed into her eyes as she understood what her father was doing, "I love you too, Daddy." Her voice cracked._

_ "Just keep running." He placed a kiss on her forehead as they heard the creatures stumble down the hallway, "Go."_

_ Harley dashed towards her window, propping it open as she climbed out onto the lattice ladder just outside her window. She took one last look at her father who smiled reassuringly at her. She tried to smile back, but she had a feeling it came out more as a grimace. Reluctantly, she started to climb down the ladder and when she hit the ground she did just as her father told her, she ran._

_ She made it about a block away before a loud explosion ripped through the air, the entire sky lighting up in orange flames. It nearly sent her to the ground and even though her father told her not to, she looked back._

_ As she stared at the flaming remnants of her childhood home, she realized how alone she was._

* * *

><p>Daryl glanced over at Harley who had finally fallen asleep about two hours ago although he'd have to wake her up in a little under an hour so they could head back to camp. He supposed the others were gonna start worrying that he'd gone and killed her if they stayed any longer.<p>

He wasn't one for sympathy, but he felt a bit sorry for the girl. It ain't easy being alone, knowing your family is dead and gone or worse. At least he had Merle, even if he was a dumb bastard most of the time; blood is blood.

And even if she had that little girl to look after most of the time, it doesn't make it hurt any less.

"Y'know," He perked up as he heard her talk, her voice groggy and crackling from sleep, "I feel guilty." Her eyes were barely open, but he could see them focusing in on the ashes of the diminished fire, "I got ta live and now I want nothin' more than ta die." He stayed silent as she talked, "He died for me and I don't even want the second chance he gave me if it means I'm alone."

Daryl's eyebrows furrowed, "Ya ain't alone." He didn't look at her instead his vision shifted from the hunting knife he was fiddling with to the string of dead squirrels hanging from a nearby tree branch, "Ya got all of us now. Tha' lil girl of yours, the Chinaman," He looked up meeting her gaze, "...me." His gaze shifted once more back to the knife, "So don't think yer alone, 'cause ya ain't."

Harley said nothing in return, but she could feel the tears pooling up in her eyes and she felt her heart clench.

Daryl got up and made his way towards her, his rough hands brushing the top of her head, running through her hair in an awkward attempt to comfort her.

"Don't start cryin' on me now," He said, "Here I thought you was this rough and tough chick." His joking tone didn't go unnoticed by Harley who had to laugh despite the horrible feeling in her chest and the tears running down her dirty face. His hand ran from the top of her head to her cheek and he wiped away the tears, leaving behind dirty smudges from his own fingers, "Yer as tough as they come and yer dad wouldn' want ya to be sittin' here havin' a pity party for yerself."

Harley nodded, sucking in a deep breath of air that shook as she tried to force back the tears and when she had regathered herself she mumbled a thanks to Daryl who only patted her on the back before he started to pack up their camp.

"You're a good man Daryl, don't see why no one else can't see that..." With that she started to pack away her things, leaving him to mull over what she said with a light feeling in his chest.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I finished with school about three weeks ago and have been trying to get used to my chaotic summer work schedule ._. Anyways! This is the revised fourth chapter with a little insight on Harley's past.<strong>

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts, it means the world to me :D**

**As always, please review if you have the time! Critique is always welcomed of course! I wanna hear what you guys would like for me to do/change/etc.**

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	5. Bruises

Harley was nearly knocked over as a little blonde ball of energy launched itself at her.

"Harley!" Anna yelled in excitement as she latched herself onto the older woman who gave her a smile and returned the hug.

"Hey there, kiddo." Harley ruffled Anna's hair, "Told ya I'd come back."

Anna looked up at Harley and gave a grin before burying her face back into Harley's side, "I missed you."

The smile on Harley's face softened a bit as her eyes did the same, "I missed ya, too."

An arm was thrown around Harley's shoulder breaking the tender moment between the young girl and her protector. Harley glanced over at the Asian boy who was grinning at her, "I didn't think you'd actually make it back in one piece, going out there with a Dixon."

Harley snorted as she shrugged Glenn's arm off her shoulders, but gave him a friendly pat on the back, "Gonna take more than a Dixon to kill me, 'm'fraid." She looked over at Daryl who was busying himself with skinning the squirrel they'd caught, "He ain't so bad, though."

Glenn looked at her with eyebrows raised, "I guess you two did some bonding, huh?"

"Somethin' like that." Harley shrugged.

Glenn snickered, "Didn't peg you for someone with a redneck fetish."

Harley smacked his arm, earning an 'ow' from him, "Don't be a prick."

Anna giggled at the pair's antics before looking over at said redneck who was now looking over at the three of them, his eyes on Harley who was busy having a fake argument with Glenn which consisted of Harley calling him names that Anna was pretty sure she wasn't allowed to repeat.

If Harley said so, maybe he wasn't so bad.

* * *

><p>"Good ta see ya made it back alive." Shane greeted as he approached Harley who was busy sorting through hers and Anna's laundry which had gone unattended to since before she left.<p>

"Wasn't a doubt in my mind that I'd be alright." Harley said to him, peering up at him for a moment before returning to the minuscule pile of laundry.

Shane shifted his weight from one leg to another as he placed his hands on his hips, "Well, I hope ya got it out of yer system."

Harley breathed in deeply as she set the pair of pants she had in her hands back down, "Listen here Shane. Unless I'm doin' somethin' that endangers the welfare of this camp then ya better butt outta my business 'cause as far as I'm concerned I don't need no Deputy Do-Good tryin' ta keep track of my every move." He looked as though he was going to say something, but Harley cut him off, "I will do as I damn well please. If I wanna go huntin' with Dixon again, I will."

Shane's brow furrowed as the frown on his face deepened, "If you wanna go off and get yerself killed by that no good hillbilly, then by all means, be my guest."

As he stalked off, Harley rolled her eyes and resumed folding her laundry not noticing said Dixon walking up behind her.

"Y'know, prob'ly ain't that good of an idea gettin' on that guy's bad side." He told her as he took a seat next to her, pulling out one of his hunting knives that needed sharpening.

Harley scoffed, "And _**you**_ are on his good side?"

A small smirk formed on Daryl's face, "I'm a 'no good hillbilly', ain't never been on that asshole's good side."

Harley laughed, "Dunno who voted him leader anyway, I sure as hell didn't." She folded the last pair of pants and placed them in her makeshift laundry basket, "I better go see if the slave drivers need me to do anything else, see ya later."

Daryl nodded his head, "Later."

Hauling the laundry basket up, she balanced it on her hip with her arm hooked under it and gave a mock salute with her free hand as she sauntered off.

The edges of Daryl's lips twitched up as he watched her walk off, that light feeling entering his chest once again.

* * *

><p>Carol was a sweet woman. She was quiet for the most part and kept to herself, but she had been kind to Harley and Anna since they arrived. However, Harley has recently become aware of exactly why it is that she was so quiet and reserved.<p>

The ugly bruise that was splotched onto the side of Carol's face wasn't the result of any sort of fall like Carol had said it was. Harley knew what a bruise looked like when someone had been punched in the face; she had given and received plenty of shots to the face whether it had been when her and her older brother had gotten into it in their youth or during the vast amount of bar fights she had gotten in since entering college.

The other women gave Carol side glances while they washed dishes down at the quarry. Their gazes would shift to Ed, who had recently taken to watching the women do whatever task it was at the time.

He stood ten feet away, leaning against a rock with a piece of grass between his teeth, leering at the lot of them.

Harley could feel the hairs on her back prickle up as his eyes came to her. She ground her teeth together and tried to ignore him.

She could feel a pool of hot rage building up in her stomach and spreading through her entire body the longer he stared. With a deep breath, she handed her last dish to Amy who was drying and stood up, "I'm heading back to camp."

Amy looked as though she was going to say something, but took one look at Harley's clenched jaw and decided against it, "Be careful, okay?"

Harley nodded, "See ya back at camp." As she walked past Ed, she could feel his eyes follow her up the hill towards the trail to the campsite and she suddenly felt like she needed a shower.

* * *

><p>"You alright?" Glenn poked his head through the flap of Harley's and Anna's tent, "You've been in here for a while now." When she just shook her head, he took it upon himself to sit on the edge of the cot she was laying on, "You wanna talk about it?"<p>

"Ya ever think about how those creatures... the walkers... how they don't have much of a choice when it comes ta killin' the livin'. It's kinda just... their nature, y'know? They ain't got the thing that makes 'em human anymore, so they just do what they can to suppress their hunger." Glenn stayed silent, contemplating her words, "_But_, then, you have us. Livin', breathin' humans capable of compassion and love and what do we do? We still try to hurt each other. Sometimes for no reason at all." She looked at Glenn, a frown on her face, "I think that makes us worse than the walkers... it makes us a lot worse."

Glenn's mouth twitched downwards into a grimace, "What brought this about?"

"Ed beats Carol." Glenn looked away, almost in shame of the fact he knew what was going on between Ed and Carol and he hasn't done anything about it, "No one says anything. We all look the other way. But why? We protect each other from those creatures, but why not from each other?"

Glenn shook his head, "I don't know."

Harley sighed, "Me either."

* * *

><p>Merle seemed to have come off his week long binge and finally emerged from his tent, a shit-eating grin on his face as he saw Harley and Daryl sitting just outside the tent eating lunch together.<p>

As soon as Harley saw Merle's face her appetite was lost and she handed her plate to Daryl, "Here ya go, you can have the rest."

Daryl grunted in thanks and shoveled the food onto his own plate.

"Hey there, sweet cheeks." Merle greeted and gave her a light pat on the rear earning a punch to the chest, "Easy there, baby doll." He rubbed the spot she hit, "Here I was thinking we could let bygones be bygones."

Harley snorted, "Fuck off, Merle." She stalked off after that.

Merle gave a wolf whistle as he stared after her before looking over at his brother, "I hope yer gettin' a piece of that."

Daryl rolled his eyes, "Shut up, Merle." He shoved his plate of food into his brother's hands as he felt himself lose his appetite as well.

* * *

><p>It had been a few days since Carol showed up at the quarry with the bruise on her face which had faded to a sickly yellow color and she sat next to Harley helping her skin the squirrels that Merle and Daryl had caught the previous day.<p>

A nagging feeling began to prod at Harley as she kept glancing over at Carol who was unusually quiet, even for her.

"Carol," Harley spoke, gaining the older woman's attention, "Why... why do ya let him do that to ya?" She heard Carol suck in air deeply, almost as if she were forcing back tears at the younger woman's words. Harley quickly tried to correct her mistake, stammering as she reached out, touching the woman's arm, "I... I didn't wanna upset ya, I just... I don't understand and I don't like seeing no one get hurt."

Carol waved the girl's hand away, "It's alright, sweetheart." She patted Harley's shoulder, "It's... it's better if you don't worry yourself over it."

Harley bit her lip, "If ya ever need anything..."

Carol nodded, "Thank you." She said, quickly nipping that conversation in the bud.

Silence fell between the two of them and Harley still didn't feel better about the situation and she started to wonder just when she became so soft-hearted.

* * *

><p>Most of the camp had gathered around the fire for dinner, save for Glenn who was perched atop the RV on watch duty and the Dixon brothers who usually refused to sit with the rest of the camp during meals, not that the other survivors really minded, they probably preferred it that way.<p>

However, since Harley seemed to be the most friendly with the Dixons, she had be nominated to bring their meals to them, which she resented considering the only one she got along with was Daryl since she thought Merle was the scum beneath her feet.

Regardless, she spooned the canned beans and slightly burnt squirrel onto two plates and made her way towards the Dixon camp, making sure to tell Anna to stay with the rest of the camp as she tends to wander off after meals.

"Here ya go, gentlemen." Harley announced in a monotonous voice as she approached them, handing them their plates full of food.

Daryl mumbled a 'thanks' as he accepted the plate while Merle sent a wink over to her, "Thank ya, sweet cheeks." She sent him a glare and turned to leave, "Ya ain't gonna stay here and enjoy the meal with us? I'm sure my baby brother would like the company." He grinned at Daryl who looked as though he was going to take a log upside Merle's head.

Harley snorted, "Unfortunately, it's not your brother's company that I don't like, it's yours."

Merle grasped where his heart would be, "Ouch, sweet cheeks, that hurt."

Harley rolled her eyes and didn't spare Merle another word before walking away.

Merle turned to Daryl who had been eating quietly while observing the interaction between Harley and his brother, "I think she's startin' ta like me."

They heard Harley snort in the distance, "As if!"

Merle gave a grin while Daryl shook his head.

* * *

><p>The next day, Harley sat on top of the RV, Dale's binoculars around her neck and his rifle propped up against the chair. Judging by how hot it was today, it was probably almost August, although Harley would have to ask Andrea since she's been keeping track of the days since the outbreak.<p>

Dressed in nothing more than a plain black tank top and jean shorts paired with her dirty combat boots, Harley was still covered in a thin layer of sweat. Even if she had been raised in the South all of her life, this heat was probably going to kill her before any walker did.

"Ya mind if I come up?" Glancing over the edge of the RV, she saw Daryl standing there with his crossbow on his back.

"Come on up." She waved her hand.

He was up there in a few seconds, handing her a lukewarm water bottle, "Here, thought ya mind need this."

She grabbed it and uncapped it, taking a long swig of it, "Fuckin' heatwave is gonna be the death of me."

Daryl snorted as he took a seat on the ledge of the RV, "Just wait until winter comes, ain't gonna be able to stay out in the open like this unless we want to freeze ta death."

Harley glanced around at the camp before nodding, "Ain't gonna be able to stay here forever. Sooner or later we're gonna have to start scoutin' for new places to stay, preferably a house or warehouse or somethin'."

Daryl nodded and for a moment they were both quiet before Daryl shifted a bit, "Listen," He glanced up at Harley, his eyes squinting due to the harsh sunlight, "'m sorry for the way Merle's been actin'..." He fidgeted with the strap for his crossbow, "He ain't a bad guy, he's just hard ta handle sometimes."

Harley bit her lip, contemplating his words, "Ya don't gotta be apologizin' for Merle bein' a dickhead. Yer his brother, not his keeper." Harley gave a shrug, "Besides, he's yer blood. Yer always gonna see the good in him when others don't. Hell, sometimes Dylan..." She paused as she felt her throat clench, "Sometimes my brother did things I wasn't proud of, but ain't nothin' gonna come between blood."

Harley looked down at Daryl who seemed to be lost in thought, his eyebrows crinkled a bit and his mouth set in a frown which seemed to age him a few years.

She prodded at him with her foot, the only limb that could reach him, "Don't look so glum, ya look like the world just came to an end or somethin'." She joked.

Daryl struggled to hold back the smile that was trying to force its way onto his face, "That ain't funny." He told her, but the lightness in his voice and slight smile on his face told her he thought otherwise. His disposition suddenly changed as he look her directly in the eye, "Merle and me... we was thinkin' of leavin'."

Harley's brows furrowed together, "Why would you leave?"

"Ain't no one but you that can seem ta tolerate us here. We ain't wanted. Figured it's better if we leave now." He said, "You could come with us, you and tha' lil girl. We'd make sure ye were safe."

Harley's frown deepened, "I don't need no protectin' and you'd be stupid if ya left." It was only after the words left her mouth that Harley realized they came out a bit harsher than intended.

Daryl stood up abruptly, "Fine!" He gritted, "Ya can stay here and rot fer all I care!"

Harley barely blinked before he was down the ladder and stalking away from the RV. The worst thing about this entire situation was the way her heart constricted as she watched him walk away.

"Aw, hell." She buried her face in her hands.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their alerts! You guys are awesome!<strong>

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	6. Normalcy

Daryl Dixon spent most of his life having any forms of dreams and aspirations beaten out of him. Verbal assaults diminished his self-esteem to practically nothing. He had learned long before the apocalypse that the world was a cruel place to live and only the toughest would survive.

* * *

><p><em>"Ya ain't gonna be nothin' but a redneck piece of shit yer entire life."<em>

_ "Why the hell ya botherin' with that school bullshit? Ya ain't never gonna graduate, yer too stupid."_

_ "She ain't ever gonna give you the time of day. Girls like that don't go after white trash like you."_

_ "Ya stupid fuckin' hillbilly."_

* * *

><p>He was a broken individual and he had been since he was four years old and his dad first took him by the wrist and threw him into the glass cabinet because he accidentally knocked over the old man's beer. His mother beat him for breaking her <em>fine <em>China.

Merle hadn't been home for that; it was around the time he had his first stint in juvenile hall.

It had been a week after Merle came back that their mother set their house on fire and herself along with it. It was almost a shame that their father wasn't there along with her, but he was out drinking with his buddies that night while their uncle Jess had taken Merle and Daryl out to eat at the local diner in celebration of Merle getting out of juvie.

The way he was raised practically bred him for survival situations like the zombie apocalypse. Most who lived in the lap of luxury wouldn't know how to deal with it, but Daryl Dixon spent most of his life in the woods to escape the wrath of his drunken father and ain't no walker bite got shit on a punch to the mouth from Will Dixon.

Nowadays, people's words tended to not hurt as much as they did when he was younger. Sure, he wasn't book smart, but there were things he was good at and those things are the reason he's alive today.

But, hearing Harley call him stupid had set him off. She was the one person besides Merle who actually acted as if they gave a shit about him even before the world went to crap.

Turns out, she don't think all that much of him anyway.

Daryl snorted at his own thoughts as he busied himself with sharpening his already sharp hunting knife, "Who the hell needs her, anyway?" He grumbled to himself.

* * *

><p>Harley was distressed.<p>

It had been two days since her and Daryl had last spoken and she could tell by the way he avoided her like the plague that he was mad as hell at her and didn't plan on talking to her any time soon.

However, that wasn't her only problem. Yesterday, she had practically cornered Glenn in his own tent in order to have a bit of girl talk with him.

* * *

><p><em>"I'm fuckin' losin' my mind." Harley raked a hand through her hair which was down from its usual ponytail, "I... I think I like him or somethin'."<em>

_ Glenn, who was seated beside her gave her a comforting pat on the shoulder, "Y'know, things like this are bound to happen... we could be the only people left on earth for all we know."_

_ Harley groaned, "Oh God, Glenn, don't say that." _

_ Glenn just laughed at his friend's troubles, "It really isn't that bad, I mean, it's just like a little crush, right?"_

_ Harley rubbed at her face, "I really hope so, he's too old for me, I'm too young for him. We're all fighting to survive. Now is really not the time to pursue a relationship."_

_ "Just, y'know... ignore your feelings?" Glenn suggested, "They'll go away eventually."_

_ Harley nodded, she could do that. She was a young woman fresh out of her teenage years, she was a professional at ignoring her feelings._

* * *

><p>The only problem with ignoring her feelings was that Daryl was ignoring her which was driving her crazy. Harley could feel the months she's spent hardening herself to survive in this world go to waste because of a dirty redneck who was practically twice her age.<p>

The only reason she had started talking to Daryl was because of the nostalgic feeling he brought her. He reminded her of the days she spent hunting with her father and brother and with them gone, he was sort of a nice reminder of them, but somewhere within the past few weeks of her joining the camp she found herself with a tiny little bitty crush on him.

"Balls." She grumbled as she flung the shirt she was washing into the sudsy bucket ignoring the water that splashed onto her rolled up jeans.

"Boy troubles?" Andrea joked from beside her.

Harley blanched at her words as Amy joined in, "You and Glenn havin' problems?"

Harley sputtered, "What?! Glenn?!"

Amy gave her a confused look, "I thought you and Glenn were kind of seeing each other..."

"No, no, no..." Harley waved her hands, "Glenn's great and everything, but y'know, he's like..." Harley paused, "He's like... my brother or somethin'."

Amy gave a sympathetic 'oh', "That's cold."

Harley rolled her eyes, "Please, now is hardly the time to be worrying about relationships." She should be choking on her own words right now.

"Just because the world decided to go to crap doesn't mean we stop being human." Amy told her, "People have _needs_." She wiggled her eyebrows a bit at the implication she was making while Andrea gave out a snort of laughter from beside her.

Harley gave another roll of her eyes and waved the blonde off, "You're crazy."

"And you're in denial."

Harley just laughed, "Right, right." She couldn't wait to tell Glenn about this.

* * *

><p>"So, Amy thinks you and I are seein' each other." Harley told Glenn as she sat down next to him.<p>

Glenn nearly spat out his lukewarm beans, "What would give her that idea?"

Harley gave a shrug as she shoveled food into her mouth, "Prob'ly 'cause we're kinda close. Men and women can't just be friends, y'know. Gotta be some hanky panky goin' on." She said with a mouth full of food.

Glenn laughed, "Hanky panky?" His demeanor changed quite rapidly as he looked at her with an eyebrow raised, "You know, if you wanted to... we could partake in some... hanky panky."

Harley stared blankly at him and he stared back at her for a long while before they bursted out laughing, "Oh God," Harley said as she rubbed her eye which had accumulated tears from her laughter, "I thought you were serious for a second."

Glenn gave a sheepish shrug, "The offer stands."

Harley gave him a playful push which turned out to be a bit too hard as he fell off the stump he was sitting on.

* * *

><p>Daryl stared at Harley as she and the Asian kid flirted with one another, his plate of food left forgotten beside him on the tailgate of his truck. The sight of the two together made his stomach crawl and left an unpleasant feeling in his chest.<p>

He wasn't a fool. He knew exactly what it was that was causing the horrible feeling and he wasn't particularly fond of the idea.

There was no denying that Harley was nice to look at. She wasn't the type of girl who was drop dead gorgeous with exotic features and legs that went on forever, but she was definitely nice to look at.

He'd caught himself staring at her backside as she walked by or he found his eyes lingering a little too long on her chest when she wore those low-cut tank tops. He'd dismissed that at first; weren't very many attractive, single ladies at the camp that he could gawk at.

However, he was starting to realize she was turning out to be a bit more than eye candy for him.

And as he watched her playfully shove the Asian out of his seat, laughing the entire time, it dawned on him that he was in deep shit.

"Balls." He grumbled.

* * *

><p>Merle, although not very book smart, was one hell of an observer when he wasn't higher than a kite. Although, he didn't really need to be all too good of an observer to notice the foul mood his brother had been in recently.<p>

"What the hell crawled up yer ass and died?" He had finally asked after a couple of hours of his brother brooding around their campsite.

"Nuthin'." Came the terse response.

Merle rolled his eyes, "If nuthin is wrong, then stop actin' like a pussy whipped fuck-nut."

Daryl's eyes narrowed into a glare directed at his older brother, "Fuck you."

Merle's form straightened a bit, "Now, I know you ain't talkin' ta me like that." Daryl's frown deepened as his eyes downcast avoiding his brother's harsh gaze, "Did yer lil girlfriend say yes to comin' with us?"

"Ain't my girlfriend." Daryl shot back.

"Guess that's a no then." Merle laughed, "We're leavin' in two days then, fuckers won't know what hit 'em..."

Daryl stayed silent, ignoring the guilty feeling that weighed down on him.

* * *

><p>"Why aren't you and Daryl friends anymore?"<p>

Harley paused with what she was doing and glanced back over at Anna who was fidgeting with her doll, "We got into a fight."

Anna thought for a moment before speaking, "Well, whose fault was it?" Harley opened her mouth to say something, but ended up shutting it quickly, her eyebrows furrowing to form a thoughtful and confused look and when she took too long to answer, Anna continued on, "'cause if it's your fault, you're supposed to say sorry."

"It's a bit more complicated than that." Harley shook her head at the girl.

Anna, however, refused to accept that answer, "How? If you're fighting, then one of you must be wrong-"

Harley cut her off, "I said somethin' mean to him and hurt his feelings, I don't think he wants to be talkin' to me."

"If you said something mean, you gotta apologize." Anna said pursing her lips as if she was Harley's mother and was scolding her, "Maybe he don't wanna talk to you 'cause you haven't apologized."

"I don't know if it'll make that much of a difference." Harley mumbled.

"Don't know until you try!" Anna said, a smile on her face, "Daryl likes you, I don't think he'd stay mad at you for long."

Harley sighed, "I hope so."

* * *

><p>Daryl couldn't say he wasn't surprised when Harley shuffled awkwardly over to his campsite during dinner time with two plates of food in her hand and an uncomfortable look on her face.<p>

Merle was nowhere to be found and Daryl for once wished that his brother hadn't meandered off to God knows where.

Harley held out a plate of food for him to take, which he hesitated to do so, but after a moment of her standing there stiffly, he took it.

She quickly sat down across from him and focused her eyes down at her plate, her plastic fork pushing her food around as she tried to remember the apology that she had practiced for hours in her head for most of the day.

It didn't really shock her that she couldn't remember a single thing she rehearsed.

"I'm..." She trailed off, trying to find the right words, "I didn't mean to-"

"I don't care." He cut her off.

She frowned, "I didn't mean it." She told him, struggling to catch his gaze with hers, "Ya ain't stupid."

He let out a snort, "Ain't nothin' I ain't never heard before."

"No," Her voice strained as she tried to ignore her frustration, "Ya ain't stupid, Daryl. I just... I don't understand why you and Merle would wanna leave. We all got it pretty good here. Sure, it's a bit rough tryin' ta feed everyone and not everyone gets along, but it's a hell of a lot better than goin' out there by yourself." She told him, "Ya don't know what it's like out there on yer own and what if somethin' happens to Merle? You'd be all on yer own and I know you can handle it, but I'd feel horrible if you were by yourself."

"That's why I asked ya to come with us." He said.

She bit her lip, "Ya don't understand. I can't just think about what I want. Anna likes it here, she's got kids her own age to play with and she _needs_ that. She _needs _normalcy." Daryl stayed quiet, toying with his food, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I called ya stupid 'cause it ain't true. Yer a smart man, Daryl, that's why I don't understand why you would wanna leave."

"Just forget it."

She frowned, "Daryl, I ain't just gonna _forget it_." Setting her plate down, she got up and walked over to Daryl, standing directly in front of him and from his spot on the tailgate, she was left looking up at him, "Yer one of the few people left in the world that I consider my friend, _please don't leave_."

Daryl twiddled his thumbs together focusing on anything but Harley's pleading eyes and he tried not to think about the way her voice cracked as she asked him not to leave, but when she finally did manage to catch his gaze, he felt his resolve slipping. He bit his lip as he stared at her and played with his hands some more as his mind raced.

"I'll talk to Merle about it." He finally said.

A smile lit up on Harley's face, one that made Daryl's stomach roll.

This girl was gonna be the death of him.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! As always, sorry updating takes so long. My work schedule is pretty hectic and when I'm not working, I'm most likely trying to catch up on sleep, so it takes me a bit to write these out.<strong>

**Please review and let me know what you think! **


	7. Warning

Daryl didn't want to admit it, but he was more than a little nervous about trying to talk his brother out of leaving, especially if his brother were to discover that his change in heart was because of a _woman_. Merle would give him hell for that.

He had promised himself that he would talk to Merle the next morning and he wouldn't pussyfoot around it or put it off for later. Or at least he hoped he wouldn't.

* * *

><p>Daryl was surprised when his brother had shaken him awake, "'ey Darlina, I'm goin' wit Chinaman and some others to tha city." He earned a confused look from his brother who was still trying to process the information in his sleepy state, "Don't trust none of them bastards ta get me my prescriptions."<p>

Daryl frowned, knowing what his brother meant by prescriptions, "Whatever." He grumbled, trying to get comfortable again against the tree stump he'd fallen asleep on, "Don't get yerself killed."

Merle gave a raspy laugh and slapped his brother's bare shoulder, "Ain't a chance in hell, baby brother."

Daryl rolled his eyes before closing them, listening to his brother walk away and he realized he wouldn't have a chance to talk to him about staying until he got back from Atlanta.

"Shit." He muttered.

* * *

><p>"Be careful, alright?" Harley told Glenn, "And don't forget to look for some clothes for me." She added.<p>

Glenn rolled his eyes, "Women... they'll never change. Even as the world is ending you're still worried about clothes."

Harley smacked his arm, "I only have two changes of clothes, it's gettin' irritatin' havin' to wash my clothes every day so I don't wear the same clothes two days in a row."

"Right, right." Glenn said, rubbing his arm, "I'll see you when we get back." He told her.

Harley watched him walk away all the while ignoring the horrible feeling that was enveloping her entire being.

She hoped it was nothing.

* * *

><p>"You're leaving too?" Harley asked Daryl as she approached his and Merle's campsite, seeing the older man preparing his crossbow and a small pack for himself.<p>

"Runnin' outta meat here. Gotta replenish the supply." He told her, "Ya wanna come with me?"

Harley thought about it for a second before shaking her head, "I don't think I should be leavin' camp considerin' most of our manpower just headed off to the city."

Daryl gave a grunt in response, trying not to let the slightly disappointed feeling consume him, "Prob'ly for the best, then."

"When ya gonna be back?" She asked, changing the topic of conversation.

Daryl swung his crossbow over his back, "Early tomorrow mornin', maybe earlier depending if I get anythin' good or not."

Harley nodded, "Good luck, then. Be careful, yeah?"

Daryl looked at her and gave a slight nod of his head, but he didn't make any motion to leave which left both him and Harley standing in front of each other with their eyes locked. After a long, drawn out pause, he opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but thought better of it and snapped his mouth shut.

Abruptly, a sheepish smile broke out on Harley's face, "Well, then, you prob'ly wanna get goin', huh? Don't die or anythin'!" With that, she shuffled away from the awkward situation they had set up for themselves, trying to control the erratic beating of her heart.

Daryl frowned as he stared after her.

"That girl..." He muttered.

* * *

><p>It was well past noon judging by the position of the Sun in the sky and there was still no sign of the Atlanta group, which had the rest of the camp worried as it shouldn't have taken them more than three or four hours to get into the city, gather whatever supplies they needed, and then leave as quickly as possible.<p>

Harley stood in front of the RV, keeping an eye on the road leading up to the camp as Dale was a bit preoccupied with the garbled transmission coming across the radio which sounded like T-Dog, who had gone with the group, saying something about the group being trapped. Dale tried to get in contact with them again, but the radio just went to static, sending panic throughout the camp.

"We do not go after them." Shane said, his decision final and absolute, "We do not risk the rest of the group."

Harley pursed her lips as she listened to Shane, his Alpha wolf personality was beginning to get on her last nerve. This kind of decision shouldn't be left up to just one person, it should've been voted on.

"We'll just have to wait." Lori decided with a solemn look as she went back to folding clothes, probably something to keep herself busy and her mind away from those trapped in the city.

Harley simply shook her head, leaning against the front of the RV, her vision not leaving the winding road ahead. Her face was set in a passive expression, but her mind was reeling with worry for those stuck in the city.

That place was a death trap and it was a mistake to send such a big group in all at once. The worst thing was everyone back at camp had no idea what was going on. They had no way of helping the group.

"What the hell did you guys get yourselves into?" Harley questioned out loud.

* * *

><p>The wild scream of a car alarm sent the camp into a flurry of panic and possibly hope. Coming up the winding road was a red sports car, the alarm going crazy, echoing throughout the area.<p>

Anna was at Harley's side in an instant, "Who is it?!"

The little girl had abandoned her school lessons a few hours ago when the group still hadn't come back and spent most of that time up on top of the RV with Dale, keeping watch with him.

Harley gave a shrug, her heart hoping that it was someone from the group, but she kept Anna close irregardless, "I dunno, but they're gonna lure Walkers here at this rate with all that noise."

When the car came to a halt at the entrance to the camp, it was Glenn who stepped out of the car and it was Glenn who was suddenly barraged with questions from Amy, Shane, and Dale all at once. The car alarm, however, prevented anyone from receiving a clear answer.

"Turn the damn alarm off!" Someone shouted amidst the chaos.

With Jim's help, the alarm was turned off within minutes and Glenn was finally able to answer questions as a van pulled up, everyone unloading from it.

Amy was at Andrea's side as soon as she stepped out of the van and Morales was attacked by his two children with hugs and a kiss from his wife. Glenn finally spared a glance to Harley who gave him a smile, showing how relieved she was that he had come back relatively unscathed.

"How'd y'all get outta there, anyway?" Shane asked.

"New guy..." Morales answered and then called for someone who was still in the van.

There was silence amongst the survivors as the man staggered out, everyone's eyes glued to him as they took in his appearance. He was a tall man with short brown hair and tired blue eyes which scanned the group.

In a turn of events, the first person to react was Carl, who launched himself at the man, "Dad!" He screamed, the tears already forming in his eyes as the man stared in disbelief at the boy and then at Lori who was standing there with an equal look of disbelief in her eyes before she too went running towards him.

"Dad?" Glenn whispered from beside Harley.

Harley gave a shrug, "Things just got... interesting."

She watched as the reunited family embraced before she felt herself become uncomfortable from watching such an intimate moment that should've been only meant for the three of them. Her eyes shifted to Shane, his mouth was forming into a tight smile while his eyes betrayed him. It looked as though his entire world had just shattered right in front of him and in that moment, Harley felt sorry for him.

Lori and Carl had been his family. He had protected and cared for them as though they were his own and just like that, they were no longer his and they were back in the place of their rightful owner.

It must've destroyed him.

* * *

><p>It had taken Harley a long time, longer than she'd like to admit, to notice that there was a person missing in their happy group. Merle Dixon was no where to be seen and it wasn't until she had spoken up that anyone even bothered to explain what had happened.<p>

"_Where's Merle?"_

* * *

><p>The only thought running through Harley's mind throughout the night was how pissed Daryl was going to be when he comes back and learns his brother was handcuffed to a roof and left for dead.<p>

T-Dog had assured everyone that Merle was still alive, that there was no way any of the Walkers had managed to get through the doorway, but Harley was absolutely positive that Daryl was going to flip a shit regardless of that information.

"Who's gonna tell him?" Someone asked.

"I will." T-Dog said, "I'm the one that dropped the key."

Harley snorted, "No offense T-Dog, but I don't think this kinda news would be best coming from you."

"I was the one that handcuffed him, so I'll tell him." The newly introduced Rick Grimes said.

"Hell, I think Harley should. Ain't no way Daryl is gonna suckerpunch her when he finds out the news." Morales piped up.

"It don't matter who tells him, he's gonna be pissed either way." Harley told them, "I suggest ya have a few people around when ya tell him or else he'll probably beat the shit outta you." She told Rick who didn't take her comment as an insult but as a serious warning.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! As always, sorry for the delay! I actually start school tomorrow and instead of sleeping I had a sudden burst of inspiration and managed to finish this chapter tonight.<strong>

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! You guys are seriously too awesome and just lovely and amazing so thank you!**

**Gonna take the chance to reply to some of your reviews from the last chapter!**

**lilhanna: **_I'm so glad you like this version better! I definitely do too :) And as for your request, well... stay tuned for the next few chapters!_

**VampWolf92: **_Thank you! Hope you enjoy the rest of the story! _

**livelovemusic96: **_Me too! :D Thank you for reviewing!_

**Leyshla Gisel: **_Daryl is always cute ;)_

**bookelf: **_Thank you! I'm glad you found this story too! I know Daryl seems passive so far, but my reasoning for that is because we don't see Daryl's character development until after Merle is gone. Daryl has, for most of life I suspect, been abused and treated like dirt by those around him, including his brother. (At least, he has in my story) It's in my experience, that those who are abused or have been abused often retract from everyone and are rather reserved, especially around those who have taken part in the abuse. So, with Merle being subtracted from the equation, we will start to see Daryl begin to come out of his shell :)_


	8. Crazy

"Is Daryl really gonna be that mad about Merle?" Anna questioned once her and Harley had retreated into the seclusion of their tent, "I mean... Merle isn't that nice of a guy."

Harley bit back the smile on her face due to Anna's analysis of Merle, 'not that nice of a guy', doesn't even cut it when it comes to describing Merle Dixon.

"It don't matter how nice of a guy Merle is..." Harley explained, "Merle is all Daryl has left. He's family and no matter how much of an asshole Merle is, it don't mean he won't be missed by Daryl if something happens to him."

Anna seemed in deep thought, but nodded regardless, "You're all I have left too, Harley. We may not be family, but you're as close to family as I'm gonna get."

Staring at the girl, Harley bit her lip before wrapping her arms around the girl, pulling her into a tight hug, "Yeah, kid, you're as close to family as I'm gonna get, too."

* * *

><p>The next day, Harley was lost in her own thoughts as she absentmindedly cleaned her gun since the thought of folding laundry made her physically ill at this point.<p>

It seemed as though it was a relatively normal day at the camp, everyone was busying themselves with their duties, but there was still tension in the air as they awaited the arrival of the youngest Dixon who was still out hunting.

The kids were off playing around the camp and Harley had hoped Anna heeded her warning of not straying too far into the woods.

Harley had just finished putting her gun back together when the screams of the children echoed through the camp and it took no more than a millisecond for Harley to sprint towards the direction where the screams came from along with the rest of the camp.

Anna ran straight into Harley, her arms wrapping around the woman's waist as she buried her head into the woman's stomach, "What happened?" Harley demanded, but Anna just shook her head in response.

"There's a walker." She heard someone say and the men were already taking care of it.

She gently pushed Anna towards Carol who had Sophia close to her and she made her way over to the clearing where the walker was. It was busy devouring a deer with two arrows sticking out the side of it and when it noticed Rick, Shane, Glenn, and Dale, it stood up, going to attack Rick only to get a bat to the face.

"First one we had up here." Dale commented, sending worried looks to the other men.

"They're running out of food in the city," Jim said, "They're starting to move further into the woods."

If they continued to come further and further into the woods, the camp would have to be moved or else they'd be overrun. They couldn't risk waking up to a hoard of walkers just outside their tents.

Harley frowned; if the group decided they weren't going to move fast enough and there started to be more incidences with walkers, Harley might have to disappoint Anna and leave the camp, no matter how much she didn't want to.

Rustling in the woods broke Harley out of her daze as everyone once again went on high alert, afraid that it was another walker, but by the judge of the arrows sticking out of the deer, Harley had a good bet on who it was and the shit storm named Daryl Dixon was fast approaching.

* * *

><p>To say Daryl didn't take the news about his brother well is a bit of an understatement. When Rick had broke the news to him, Daryl had looked at Harley with disbelief, but when Harley just nodded her head, confirming what Rick had just told him, Daryl went into a full on rage.<p>

Harley watched as Daryl went after Rick, only to be double teamed by him and Shane, the latter of which put him in a chokehold.

"Chokehold's illegal!" Daryl yelled, trying to wrestle his way out of Shane's tight grip.

Shane just snorted, "Yeah, you can file a complaint."

Everyone kept quiet as Rick spoke to Daryl, trying to get him to calm down, but when T-Dog intervened, telling Daryl that he had dropped the key to the handcuffs that trapped Merle on the roof, Daryl just stared at the ground almost pitifully, before getting up, complying with Rick's request.

"To hell with all of y'all!" Daryl said as he wiped his face as if he was trying to prevent the tears that were forming in his eyes from releasing, "Just tell me where he is so I can go get 'im."

Lori chimed in from the doorway of the RV, "He'll show you." She looked pointedly at Rick, "Innit that right?"

Rick nodded slowly before making his way over to Harley, leaning in and whispering into her ear, "Get him calmed down while we discuss the plan, alright?"

Harley nodded, "Alright." She walked over to Daryl, grabbing his upper arm and tugging him in the direction of her tent, "C'mon."

* * *

><p>"It would prob'ly be stupid to ask if you were okay, but I feel obligated to so, are you okay?" Daryl gave a grunt in response to Harley's question and Harley gave a sigh in response to his grunt, "Actin' like a child ain't gonna get ya nowhere." She chided.<p>

Daryl ran his fingers through his hair before settling his face in his hands and letting out a long, shaky breath.

Harley frowned as she rubbed her hand on his back, "Y'know... If ya wanted to cry, I won't tell anyone that the Great and Powerful Daryl Dixon cried like a little girl." She joked and she could see the sides of his face that weren't covered by his hands turn up just slightly as if he were smiling beneath his calloused hands, "I also won't tell them that yer capable of smilin'."

Daryl's face retreated from his hands and he sighed, letting the two of them fall into silence.

"If it's any reassurance, he's most definitely alive." Harley said breaking the silence after a few minutes, "Unfortunately, I don't think anything could kill that bastard."

Daryl didn't say anything for a few seconds, merely mulling over Harley's statement, "He's a tough sonovabitch." He relented, "S'pose yer right."

Harley gave him a smile, "'course I am."

Daryl stood up, throwing his crossbow over his shoulder, "Thanks." He mumbled and his hand planted itself onto the top of her head, ruffling her hair slightly before it found its way to the side of her face, lingering there for a while before he seemed to get a hold of himself and he retracted it.

He looked down at Harley and she looked back at him before giving him another smile, "Better go see what the plan is." She said as she got up and walked past him before stopping just a few steps in front of him. Turning around, she tugged at his hand, her fingers intertwining with his, "It'll be alright, Daryl."

He could do nothing but stare at her.

* * *

><p>It was decided that Rick, Glenn, T-Dog, and Daryl would head back into Atlanta in order to retrieve Merle as well as a bag of guns and ammo that Rick had dropped when he was ambushed by walkers.<p>

Everyone, especially Shane, was less than pleased that the four were going back into the walker ridden city in order to save the likes of Merle Dixon and Harley couldn't say she didn't feel the same.

She didn't like Merle and frankly she had no use for him considering he was the scum beneath her feet, but that didn't mean that he meant nothing to everyone.

She wasn't going to let her personal feelings about Merle get in the way of Daryl finding the only person he had left in this world.

* * *

><p>Harley was down at the quarry with the rest of the women helping them wash clothes in an attempt to keep their minds off of the four who had gone back into the city. She, Andrea, Amy, Carol, and Jacqui were all having a pleasant conversation while Shane and Carl were a few yards away playing in the water.<p>

"I'm beginning to question the division of labor around here." Jacqui mumbled as she placed another basket of laundry that needed to be washed on the ground.

Harley glanced back at Ed who sat uselessly on the tailgate of the truck. She may butt heads with Shane every so often, but at least he pulled his weight around camp. Ed was too busy beating up on his poor wife and daughter to do anything else. Harley shook the thoughts from her head, realizing they were only making her angrier and angrier the more she thought about it.

Carol stole a glance back at her husband and when she received a look of warning from him, she went back to work, mumbling, "It's just the way it is." And that ended the conversation, however, it wasn't too long before she started a new conversation, "I do miss my Maytag." Carol sighed as she scrubbed a plaid shirt against the washing board.

Andrea continued it, talking about her car with its navigation system, Jacqui and her coffee maker, and Amy, her computer and texting.

Harley chimed in as well, "I miss the radio." Hell, what she wouldn't give to be listening to even her father's old country station right about now.

"I miss my vibrator." Andrea admitted.

There was a flurry of giggles from all of the women before Carol said, "Me too." Sending the group into an even louder round of laughter which was quickly put to a stop by Ed who approached the group of women.

"What's so funny?" He asked after taking a puff of his cigarette.

"Just swapping war stories, Ed." Andrea told him and they all turned back to their laundry, sending Carol looks of sympathy before doing so. Harley, however, had stopped scrubbing her clothes and was instead watching Ed out of the corner of her eye as he drew closer to them. Andrea noticed too and turned back to him, "Problem, Ed?"

"None that concerns you." He told her, "You oughta focus on your work, this ain't no comedy club."

Harley didn't like the tone in his voice and she could tell that the other women didn't either. He may think he can talk to his wife like that, but he most certainly isn't allowed to talk to anyone else like that.

Andrea, though, seemed to be the only one with a short enough fuse to say anything about it though, "Tell you what, Ed, you don't like the way your laundry is done, pitch in and do it yourself." She threw a wet piece of clothing at Ed, only to have it thrown back at her ten times harder.

In seconds, Harley and Amy were at Andrea's side, Harley ready to brawl if the man decided to get physical with any of the other women. She knew that none of them would be able to take on Ed if he were to attack them, Harley, however was no stranger to fist fights and didn't mind taking a few beatings if need be.

The situation escalated quickly as Ed ordered Carol to come with him and Andrea refused to let her leave. Within seconds everything went out of control as Ed reeled back and smacked Carol straight across the face, sending everyone into a frenzy.

Harley along with Andrea shoved Ed back from Carol while Amy grabbed her, pulling her away. Harley got a few punches in on Ed, but took an elbow to the face in the process.

She wasn't surprised when Shane appeared out of nowhere, grabbing Ed by the collar of his shirt and dragged him away, "Come on!" He threw Ed to the ground and started beating on him, continuing to do so even after a few of the women screamed at him to stop, "You put your hands on your wife, your little girl, or anyone else int his camp and I will not stop next time! I'll beatcha to death Ed, I'll beatcha to death!" He gave one final punch and a kick to Ed's side for good measure before stalking away.

Harley stood with the others as Carol went straight to her husband's side, crying.

* * *

><p>The rest of the morning was spent with Lori tending to Harley's swollen and bruised cheek.<p>

"I can't believe he hit you." Lori mumbled as she pressed a cold compress to Harley's face, one she had gotten out of the mini fridge in the RV.

Harley just snorted, "You should see what Shane did to him."

Lori just pursed her lips, "Shouldn't be fightin' like that. Men are a lot bigger than you... a lot stronger too, I know you think you're Wonder Woman, but you could've really gotten hurt."

Harley frowned, "Couldn't just let him beat up on Carol. I wasn't the only one that jumped in either." Harley told her, "I was just the only one that got an elbow to the face."

Lori pulled the compress back, examining Harley's cheek which was already turning purple, "Well, try not to get into anymore fights, alright?"

Harley gave her a two-fingered salute, "You got it."

* * *

><p>To add onto the craziness that has already happened within the past two days, it seemed as though Jim has lost it.<p>

Dale stood on top of the RV, looking up onto the hill where Jim currently was digging at the ground relentlessly.

"Everythin' okay, Dale?" Harley asked form the ground as she noticed the man's preoccupation, "Watcha lookin' at?"

Dale looked down at her, "I think we might need to get Shane."

Harley perked an eyebrow up, "I'll get 'im."

* * *

><p>Harley stayed behind as the rest of the group went to see what Jim was up to. Whatever it was, it wasn't anything good and she's had enough crazy for the day.<p>

"Wonder what's goin' on..." Anna said as they sat on top of the RV, taking Dale's place while he and the others went to investigate.

"Best not to worry yourself over the little things." Harley told her, "Shane'll take care of it." She kept an eye on the hill where everyone was talking to Jim and she watched Shane took Jim down, pinning him to the ground, "The less we involve ourselves in, the better." She said, turning away.

* * *

><p><strong>Only took me a month to update... I'm so sorry guys T_T I'm a terrible author. <strong>

**Thank you to everyone who's reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts despite my horrible updating habits! I really do appreciate every single one of you =) Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think!**

**And as always, if you have a Tumblr, follow me! My URL is **_bbyjesus_** :D**


	9. Mourn

Everyone was gathered around the fire, eating the fish that Amy and Andrea had caught while out on their fishing excursion. They were all happy to be eating something other than canned food and squirrels for once.

There was polite chit-chat and jokes being thrown out into the conversation almost effortlessly and everyone seemed to join in at one point or another, even Harley cracked a few jokes and had some input on the conversation.

Anna tugged at Harley's old leather jacket sleeve, "I'm going to bed." Harley gave her a nod and a pat on the head.

"Go straight to the tent." Harley told the younger girl before she took another bite of the fish. Anna nodded and scurried off in the direction of the tent she shared with Harley.

Meanwhile, Harley couldn't help, but feel as though something odd had swept over the camp, a sort of peaceful feeling that none of the survivors had felt since the outbreak. She looked around, seeing everyone smiling and laughing as though they were a group of friends out on a camping trip together.

Amy got up from her seat only to have Andrea immediately question where she was going, "I'm going to the bathroom. You try to be discreet around here..." She grumbled as she stalked off towards the RV.

Within a few seconds of Amy disappearing into the RV, she reappeared, "Anyone got any toilet paper?"

It happened very suddenly.

Amy shrieked as a walker bit into her arm and she desperately tried to fight it off. Panic struck and everyone fled in different directions, but Harley was left standing near the fire, looking around desperately, "Anna?!" When there was no answer, she grabbed her bat which was leaning up against her chair and her gun which was tucked into the back of her jeans and headed in the direction of their tent, "Anna, where are you?!"

Gun shots sounded off as Shane opened fire on the walkers. When she reached the tent, she lifted the flap hoping to find Anna safely sitting inside, but the tent was empty.

"ANNA?!" Harley shouted, panic finally taking hold of her.

She faintly heard Shane yell something about heading to the RV in the background of her mind, but she ignored it, taking out any walkers in her path with a bullet to the skull as she searched for Anna amidst the chaos.

Shots rang off as she put a bullet in a walker's head who was about to attack Jacqui as she tried to make her way to the RV, following Shane's orders.

"Go." Harley muttered, shooting another walker who was blocking Jacqui's path.

Upon hearing her name being called out she turned to find Anna running towards her, "Harley!"

There was a wave of relief that washed over her as she started to make her way to Anna, but then all at once that relief turned into horror. Her breath hitched up into her throat as she saw a walker appear behind Anna, grabbing her by the arm before biting down on her shoulder.

"Oh God..." Harley choked out and tears welled up in her eyes as she shakily aimed her gun and shot the walker, nearly missing, "No..." She bolted over to where Anna lay bleeding, struggling to breathe, "Oh god no." She mumbled as she clamped a hand down on Anna's bleeding shoulder, "Anna..." She grabbed the girl's hand within her own which was covered in blood and pressed it to her forehead, "I'm so sorry, Anna... I'm so, so sorry."

A small voice spoke up, "It's okay."

Harley looked up, tears coating her eyes, "I told you I'd protect you."

"It's okay." Anna repeated as she smiled weakly, her vision beginning to fade in and out as she lost more and more blood, "It's okay." More tears filled her eyes, but Harley refused to let them fall as she clung to Anna, her breathing slowing down as she whispered again and again, "It's okay", to Harley as Harley hugged her tightly, rocking her gently back and forth.

"I'm so sorry." Harley's voice cracked as Anna exhaled once more, her murmuring coming to a painful stop. Harley's firm grip on her did not relent as her throat tightened, "Please..." She begged quietly, "Please don't leave me."

More gun shots rang out, signaling that Rick and the others had finally come back and not long after they arrived did the gunshots stop completely, the only noises ringing in the air were the sounds of anguish and sorrow.

* * *

><p>The sun had risen, but everyone was already wide awake. No one had been able to sleep that night, not with Andrea's sobs echoing through the air or with little Carl crying into his father's shirt.<p>

Harley remained at Anna's side, still holding the girl's tiny hand within her own.

Daryl had come over sometime during the night to see how she was doing, but her face was like a stone; unmoving and unchanging. He didn't say anything to her, merely placing a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to ease some of her pain, but he knew that it wouldn't help much.

So, he sat next to her as she grieved, his hand never leaving her shoulder and he never said a word, he simply let her mourn her loss.

By morning Daryl had left her side to go help with the disposal of the bodies, leaving Harley alone with Anna's body which had gone cold and pale.

It was a few hours before Lori made her way over to Harley, who spoke before Lori could even say anything, "I know..." Her voice was hoarse from crying and barely above a whisper, "Just give me a bit more time."

Lori nodded solemnly, "Alright," She said, "If that's what you need."

* * *

><p>"What're we gonna do 'bout them?" Rick asked, noting that neither Harley nor Andrea had moved the entire night.<p>

"Andrea won't even talk to us." Lori said, "She's been there all night."

"We can't just leave Amy like that..." Shane piped up, "We need to deal with it... with both of them." He said motioning to where Harley sat with Anna as well.

"Has Harley said anything?" Rick asked Lori who had gone over to talk with Harley just a few minutes ago.

Lori sighed, "She knows what needs to be done."

Rick was silent for a moment, "I'm gonna go talk to Andrea."

Lori watched as he approached Andrea, knowing that it would not end well.

* * *

><p>Harley ran her finger down the barrel of the gun, "One bullet left." She observed, "Seems kind of fittin', donnit?"<p>

* * *

><p>"<em>Christ," Harley grumbled, "Didn't realize the place would be crawlin' wit these fuckers." She stepped over the unmoving body of the walker she had just taken out and she checked her gun, frowning when she noticed she only had one bullet remaining, "Dangit."<em>

_She was pretty much out of ammo and was almost positive that she wouldn't find any extra bullets lying around this particular house which seemed to be unoccupied upon first inspection. While the shutters were hanging by a screw and the windows and doors were broken in, there didn't seem to be any movement within the house which was one of the reasons Harley decided to see if there were any supplies to scavenge._

_It had been a few weeks since the entire country succumbed to this new, incurable disease and already the towns that she had been to seemed like they hadn't been inhabited in months, needless to say, supplies were hard to come by._

_However, Harley found out that her assumption was wrong and that this particular house was very much occupied and not just by the few walkers she had killed._

_There was a noise that she heard as she rummaged through the kitchen cabinets, hoping to find even just a box of cereal to appease her screaming stomach._

_It was a bit of a foreign noise, something she hadn't heard for quite some time now; the sound of a child crying. Harley immediately stopped her search and stayed still, listening closely to find the source of the crying._

_The floor creaked with each footstep she took and when she was in front of the cupboard, the muffled crying coming from beyond the door stopped abruptly. She looked down at the doorknob, noticing a key locking the cupboard and she found that a bit odd._

_With much hesitance, unlocked the door and as she opened it, she was unsure of what she would find._

_There, gathered on the floor in a sobbing mess, was a small blonde haired girl whose big blue eyes were red from crying and nose was full of snot. She was a sight for sore eyes if anything else. Her eyes widened with fear as she sunk back into the empty shelf behind her, trying to inch away from Harley who simply stood in the doorway with her eyebrows furrowed in confusion._

"_The hell are you doin' in a pantry, kid?" Harley asked._

_The girl didn't say anything, she only started to cry once more and even louder than before._

"_Hey, hey," Harley said gently, kneeling down in front of the girl, "Ya gotta be quiet, okay? We don't wanna attract any unwanted attention, ya got that?"_

_The girl's cries muted themselves as she wiped her nose on the sleeve of her dirty sweatshirt, "I don't know where my parents are." Was the first thing she said._

_Harley frowned, "Not here, kid. I'm sorry." _

_The girl was silent and Harley wasn't sure what to do. She was never any good with kids, let alone crying kids and there was a sudden realization of the problem that was now at her hands._

_Was she going to take the kid with her or leave her here to fend for herself? Her instincts were telling her to just cut her losses now because trying to take care of herself as well as a child would only lead to them both getting killed, however, her conscious was urging her to take the child with her. She couldn't just leave a little girl all on her own in a house that may still have walkers in it._

_Harley bit her lip and her eyes locked with the child's as she formed a decision, "Your name?"_

"_What?" The girl looked confused._

"_Your name. What is it?"_

_The girl was quiet for a moment, probably contemplating what her parents once told her about not talking to strangers, but she wasn't quite sure that rule applied to this situation, "Anna."_

"_Alright, Anna." Harley held her hand out for Anna to take, "I'm Harley." Anna took her hand and Harley helped pull her off the ground with ease, "Listen, I got one bullet left in this gun." Harley waved the gun slightly and Anna seemed unaffected by it, probably used to them due to her father being a hunter or something, "Gotta make it count, alright?" She gave the girl a playful wink._

_Almost on cue, there was a loud groaning that resonated through the house that came from above them and Harley knew what was coming for them. Anna cowered behind her, looking at the staircase in front of them expectantly._

"_I'm gonna protect you, don't worry."_

* * *

><p>The sound of a gun going off startled everyone, "The hell was that?" Shane asked about to get in a tizzy.<p>

Their eyes turned to Harley who was walking over to them, carrying Anna as though she were a toddler. Anna's legs swayed with each step Harley took and they could see Harley's hands clenching at Anna as she tried hard not to cry, especially not in front of them.

"Here." Harley said as she gently placed Anna's body down near the rest of the dead which allowed the group to see the bullet wound that went straight through her forehead, "I took care of it. She won't be comin' back."

No one said anything as she hurried over to her tent before anyone could see the tears that were streaming down her face. She'd have to move on, she knew that better than anyone, but she needed time to mourn.

They all did.

* * *

><p><strong>Wow, look at me posting two chapters in a day like I'm a driven individual. Ha. T_T <strong>

**Think of this as an apology for my shitty updating habits. Hope you guys enjoy this one! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! I appreciate it 3**


	10. Care

It seemed as though the hits just kept on coming for the group of survivors as they soon learned that Jim had gotten bit during the attack the previous night and no one knew exactly how to handle that situation. He was still alive; still a living, breathing human but who knew how long it would be before he would be trying to devour their flesh.

Everyone looked to Rick for a solution, a silent notion of him being dubbed the new alpha wolf; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was his answer, in order to _maybe_ find a cure for Jim before he turned.

Harley almost wanted to laugh in Rick's face when she heard that one from Daryl who had informed her of the ongoing situation. A lot of preventing that place has done in the last few weeks. Daryl also mentioned his attempted murder upon the infected man to which Harley just shook her head and called him distasteful.

Daryl stood in the entry way of Harley's tent as she packed what little she had into a duffle bag and messenger bag. She had already packed Anna's belongings and placed them outside the tent almost in a way to avoid looking at them.

"Y'know..." Harley began as she shoved the final piece of clothing into the duffle bag, "I thought it'd get easier... losin' people..." Daryl stayed silent and studied her face as her eyebrows crinkled together, "It doesn't. Not even a little bit." The only sound that resonated throughout the tent was the zipper of the duffle bag being shut, "Ya get close to people only for them to end up dead. What the hell's the point?"

Daryl grabbed the duffle bag and messenger bag off of her bed, setting out to put them in the back of his truck, but before he did that he turned to her, "Even though all this..." He gestured around him, "... happened, don't mean you get to start closin' yerself off ta people. Ya can't be afraid ta care just 'cause some bad stuff happens. Tha hell kind of life is one where yer afraid ta care about other people?"

Harley bit her lip as she tried to push back the onslaught of tears that were welling up in her eyes, "Ain't no one prepared you for this kind of stuff in school. There were no Zombie Survival courses or How to Deal with Everyone You Love Dying classes." As she rambled the tears began to fall from her eyes, "I'm just a fuckin' kid still. Ain't nothing I want more than my Daddy right now, but he blew himself to fuckin' kingdom come. My dad, my brother... Anna... Why the fuck am I still alive when they're dead?" She choked back a sob and Daryl couldn't do anything but listen, "I feel like I have this obligation to keep on fightin' for them, 'cause I got to live and they didn't, but I don't even wanna live anymore, not if it means livin' like this."

The bags had dropped from Daryl's hands which were now wrapped around Harley's shoulders and he held her about half an arm's length away, urging her to look at him. Her watery brown eyes met his and she should've felt embarrassed about breaking down in front of him like a child, but all she felt was ashamed at the disappointment in his eyes.

"Don't ya say that." He mumbled, "Don't think ya wouldn't be missed if you were gone."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you want to ride with Daryl?" Dale had asked Harley for what seemed like the hundredth time.<p>

It was decided by Harley that she would be driving with Daryl in his truck, not wanting to interrupt quality family time between the Grimes and certainly not wanting to ride with someone who's been infected.

Harley simply disregarded the question as she had the first time he asked, "Rather take my chances with Daryl than with someone who got bit."

And that was the end of the discussion.

Daryl came up behind Harley, tossing the rest of his bags into the bed of his truck, next to Merle's bike, "What was that about?" He asked.

Harley gave a shrug, "Askin' me if I was sure I didn' wanna ride in the RV with them."

"Are ya sure ya don't wanna?" Daryl asked, suddenly second guessing his decision to invite her to ride along with him, "Ain't gotta ride with me just 'cause ya feel obligated."

Harley quirked an eyebrow, "Who said I felt obligated? Wouldn't be ridin' with ya if I didn't wanna, don't be such a girl." She remarked as she placed her last piece of luggage, the old guitar her and Anna had found, into the back of the truck.

Daryl gave a snort at her playful insult, but effectively changed the subject of the conversation to the guitar she'd just placed in the back of his truck, "What's that?"

"Something I came across before some asshole put a bullet in my leg." She explained, "Y'know, I was a Music major back in college, could play all sorts of instruments... guitars were my favorite though..." She trailed off.

Music was something that always came easy to her; some people could add, subtract, multiply, and divide numbers in their head within milliseconds, others could express their thoughts and emotions in wild ways with just a pencil and a piece of paper, but Harley... Harley had an ear for music and that was apparent even at a young age when her mother signed her up for piano lessons and within a few months she had surpassed the kids who had been taking lessons for years.

Her father used to joke that she was his little child prodigy.

"You'll have ta play me somethin' sometime."

Harley thought back to when she had told Anna she'd play a song for her, "Yeah, I'll play you a little tune sometime." She assured him.

* * *

><p>For the most part, Harley and Daryl rode in a comfortable silence, the only background noise was the quiet buzz of the radio which was tuned in to the Emergency Broadcast Channel, it was set only loud enough to hear the crackle of the white noise.<p>

"It was just you and Merle, then?" Harley finally spoke after about a half an hour of driving, breaking the silence.

He didn't answer for a moment, "Yeah, just us. Lost my dad at the beginning of the outbreak and ma Uncle Jess not too long after." He glanced over at her for a moment before looking back at the road, "Were you alone? Y'know, 'fore ya picked up the li'l girl?"

Harley nodded, "Yeah, been alone for a while. My brother and dad died when the outbreak first started, picked up Anna a couple of weeks after that."

The truck fell into silence after that, neither one of them being able to start the conversation back up.

Every now and again, Harley would glance at Daryl out of the corner of her eye and when she wasn't looking, he'd look over at her.

This went on for a while.

* * *

><p>When the convoy came to a stop, both Harley and Daryl shared looks of confusion before hopping out of the truck to see what the hold up was. When they approached the RV, a blast of white smoke billowed up from the engine as Rick and Dale opened the front to inspect what was causing the overheating.<p>

"That don't look too good." Harley commented as she rested against the side of the RV.

Daryl snorted, "Got that right."

"Told you that hose wouldn't last long. I needed the one from the cube van." Dale said as he and Rick discussed their options.

"There's a gas station up ahead." Shane told the group who had gathered in front of the van as he looked through his binoculars.

Jacqui suddenly rushed out of the RV, "It's not good." She said worriedly, "I don't think Jim can take anymore."

Harley felt sorry for her. Jacqui was one of the few people at the camp who had opened herself up completely to everyone. She cared for each and every person in their group, save for the likes of Merle Dixon and Ed Peletier.

T-Dog and Shane decided to go ahead and see if they could find any supplies at the gas station Shane saw, while the rest of the group, except for Daryl and Harley, ventured into the RV to see how bad Jim had gotten.

"That ain't good." Daryl said as he jerked his head slightly to the RV, "Somethin's gotta be done."

Harley tilted her head to the side in a gesture of indecisiveness, "There ain't much that can be done in this situation, though." She sighed, "As much of a future danger he is going to be for us, right now, in this moment, he's still Jim. Morally, it ain't right to kill him while he's still... y'know... human." Daryl's eyebrows rose just slightly as he looked down at Harley, "If we go around all willy nilly killin' everyone, we're no worse than the walkers... Gotta keep our humanity, y'know?"

Daryl kept silent, not willing to admit he could see where Harley was coming from because it was just that type of thinking that would get you killed in this world.

* * *

><p>"It's what he wants." Rick explained to everyone outside of the RV.<p>

He had went in to talk to Jim about what Jim wanted to be done; something they should have done in the first place.

"So, we just leave him here?" Shane asked, "Take off? I don't think I could live with that."

_Who knew Shane had such a strong moral compass?_ Harley mused to herself.

"It's not your call." Lori told him.

Harley nodded, agreeing with Lori, "You can't force him to come along when he's suffering so much." She spoke up, "It's selfish to make him suffer just because our consciouses can't live with it."

There was a quiet agreement amongst the group and it was decided what they would do.

* * *

><p>Everyone stood solemnly around Jim, some people saying their final goodbyes to the dying man and after Dale spoke, they lingered there for a few seconds, unsure of what to do. Glenn was the first to turn away, heading for the RV and everyone followed suit, going to their vehicles. Daryl stood there a bit longer than everyone else, almost as if he was apologizing for the way he acted towards Jim at the camp.<p>

Daryl's silence was odd as he got into the truck and started it up. Harley could tell by his demeanor that there was some inner turmoil going on with him.

"He doesn't blame you."

Daryl snapped, "How do you know that?"

Harley frowned, "Because you were lookin' out for yourself and everyone else. Jim's a sensible man, he understands that."

Daryl gave a snort of indignation as he pressed down on the gas pedal, following everyone else who had started moving and from the side mirror, Harley spared on last glance to Jim who was looking up through the tree branches at the sky, probably preparing himself for whatever lied ahead. She averted her eyes back forward and then to Daryl who was biting his thumbnail.

"Y'know, if ya ever need a shoulder to cry on, mine's always free."

There was a slight smirk that came across Daryl's face, "Ain't no crybaby like you are." He teased.

Harley's eyes narrowed, "Ain't no crybaby."

"Sure ya aren't." He replied sarcastically.

Harley gave his arm a whack, "Don't be a dick to the only person in camp that likes ya."

A muteness overtook the truck quite suddenly and Harley's face flushed with embarrassment at the fact she had completely put a halt to their pleasant conversation and then just as quickly Daryl piped back up, "So, ya like me, huh?"

His question caught Harley off guard and she realized just why the conversation was put to a stop. She stammered a bit, "O-o'course I do..." She looked away, finding something outside the truck very interesting all of a sudden, "Ya ain't bad company."

Daryl's lips just turned up even more into a barely there smile, "Ya ain't bad company, either."

* * *

><p><strong>I'm on a roll this week guys xD Mostly due to the influx of reviews, favorites, and people adding this story to their story alerts. Seriously, you guys keep me so motivated, so thank you! Keep 'em comin'!<strong>

**I decided to do a chapter with a lot of Harley/Daryl interaction, so I hope you like it! **


	11. Hope

When they arrived at the CDC, a graveyard greeted them. There were bodies littered across the ground and it looked as though it had been a war zone at one point. It only proved to dishearten most of the group.

Harley felt her heart sink, "What if there's nothing left?" She asked.

"Then we head somewhere else." Daryl told her as he put the truck in park and turned it off before grabbing his bow while Harley stuffed her gun in the waistband of her pants and grabbed her bat before getting out of the truck, Daryl following close behind.

There was a foul stench in the air which could only be coming from the rotting bodies of the dead soldiers and even some civilians which were infested with flies. Harley covered her mouth with the sleeve of her jacket as she stepped over one of the decomposing bodies, trying to hold back the urge to vomit.

"C'mon." Daryl ordered, grasping Harley's upper arm which forced her to move a bit more quickly and at pace with him. She could tell from the look in his eyes that he was on the defensive, suddenly all of his hunter's instincts kicking in.

Harley let Daryl drag her along with him as they trailed after the others who all followed Rick. She glanced around at all the bodies and the tanks and couldn't help but wonder what had happened here.

Had the force of the walkers really been so strong that even the military succumbed to them? What does that say for them? For their group? If an army couldn't even withstand the disease, what would become of them?

Any ounce of hope that Harley had seemed to drain away with each step she took. The CDC was their last hope. They wouldn't be able to make it to Fort Benning, not with the measly amount of fuel they currently had. They were stranded and if the CDC was a bust, then there was nothing left for them.

"Let's go." Rick said, "We're almost there."

The sun had already begun to set and it wouldn't be long before night would fall which meant more and more walkers would emerge.

As they approached the shuttered doors, both Rick and Shane banged on them, hoping that someone, anyone was behind them and that they would be able to help them.

"There's no one there." Someone muttered.

Rick turned around, anger and disbelief evident in his eyes, "Then why are these shutters down?"

Harley kept close to Daryl, biting her lip as she watched Rick pound against the metal doors. Nervousness building up in her stomach as she noticed a walker staggering towards them which luckily, Daryl had noticed as well.

"Walker!" He called out and suddenly he was angry. An arrow went straight through the walker's head and Daryl wheeled around to face Rick, "You led us to a dead end!" He shouted.

"Daryl!" Harley went to grab his arm, but he just shrugged her off, stomping angrily over to Rick.

"He made a call." Shane replied and although he was equally as angry as Daryl, he tried to defend Rick.

That, unfortunately, didn't make Daryl any less infuriated, "He made the wrong damn call!"

Panic began to stir up within the group and already the children were breaking down into tears as they clung to their mothers who were equally as frightened.

"What do we do?" Carol asked.

"We can't be this close to the city after dark." Lori told Rick who continued to look at the building with scrutiny in his eyes, still having some sort of hope that there was someone behind those doors that could help them.

"We're going." Daryl told Harley as he went to grab her once more, "Shoulda never agreed to this bullshit."

Harley tried to brush him off, "Daryl!" She grumbled, "Daryl! Let go!" She told him when he refused to release his grip of her, "We won't even get fifteen miles!"

"It's better than waiting here for the walkers to get us!" He yelled at her.

"No, wait!" Rick called out as everyone began to walk away, "The camera moved!"

Lori began to scream at him, desperately trying to get him to come with the rest of the group, "Rick, there's no one here!"

He continued to shout as Lori gripped his arm, "You're killing us! You're killing us!" His voice was cracking and the last shred of hope he had vanished from his eyes as he turned and willingly began to walk away with his wife.

There was an eruption of light which pierced the setting darkness as the shuttered doors flew open, causing everyone to come to a halt, even Daryl who had thrown Harley over his shoulder by this time.

"Oh God..." Harley breathed as Daryl set her down, both staring in awe at the wonderful light that let hope seep into each and everyone one of them.

* * *

><p>"The price of admission is a blood test." Doctor Edwin Jenner of the CDC announced to their group.<p>

"We can do that." Rick assured him although some others seemed a bit confused about the blood test. If they were infected, they'd be running fevers and hallucinating by now, so a blood test didn't seem all that necessary, but if a man offering them sanctuary wanted nothing more than a vial of their blood, who were they to argue?

Rick had volunteered first for the blood test and Harley soon after, not minding needles as much as some of the others which was apparent from her numerous ear piercings and belly button piercing.

"You all look like hell." Jenner admitted to Harley as he began to draw her blood.

Harley let out a weak laugh, "We've been through hell."

Jenner's face turned grim, "Is it really that bad out there?"

Harley nodded as he finished up, "Could be worse though, right?"

Jenner hummed in agreement as he labeled the vial of blood, "Could definitely be worse."

Harley didn't know why, but the cryptic tone of his voice made her slightly curious as to any underlying meaning that statement might've had. She brushed away her curiosity as it was replaced with a woozy feeling that she knew was from both lack of sleep and food paired with having her blood taken.

She joined Daryl who was leaning against the wall away from the rest of the group watching as Dale volunteered to go next.

Harley noticed Daryl eyeing Jenner a bit warily and then his gaze switched to the needle in Jenner's hand which caused him to lean back a bit further into the wall. Realization struck Harley and she almost had to fight the smirk that tugged at the corner of her lips. That didn't go unnoticed by Daryl who turned his vision to her, "The hell are you smirkin' at?"

"You're afraid of needles."

He scoffed, "No I ain't." He elbowed her side in an attempt to stop the laughter that was beginning to bubble out of her, but it had the opposite effect.

She poked at one of the tattoos on his arm, "You have tattoos, though!"

"Told ya," He grumbled, "Ain't afraid of no needles." When she looked up at him with a disbelieving stare, he grumbled some more, "Fuckin' hate havin' ma blood taken though."

She gave him a firm pat on the back, "Don't be such a wuss, it ain't all that bad."

* * *

><p>Everyone's spirits seemed to be lifted as they gathered around the large round conference table, that was now serving as their dinner table, enjoying the food and drinks.<p>

After Harley had shoved her face with the spaghetti T-Dog had whipped up, she had taken a bottle of wine for herself and was just about to pour her third glass while everyone else was finishing up their first.

"Jeez Harley, didn't know you were such a drinker." Glenn commented as he nudged her side and sent her a playful wink.

"Party school." She replied with a sheepish shrug, "Think I did more drinkin' and partyin' than I did studyin'."

Lori and Carol gave her looks of disapproval and shook their heads while sipping on their own glasses of wine. _Mothers. _Harley thought as she continued to drink from her fresh glass of wine, attempting to hide her smile.

It was nice having those two around. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had any sort of maternal figure in her life, hell she could barely remember her own mother as it is.

At that thought, she sighed a bit, her smiling dropping just a little and she placed the glass on the counter beside her. Although, losing her mother had been hard on her when she was younger, it seems to have no affect on her now that she's grown older.

She missed her mother, that was for sure, there would always be a small part of herself that vanished when her mother died, but she didn't dwell on it and neither did her father or brother when she passed. But, just because they picked up and moved on with their lives didn't mean that they didn't love her. They loved her enough to keep on going with what she had given to them; with the life they had all made together.

She looked around at everyone; all of these people who had survived and continued on despite the struggle to do so. They've formed their own family of sorts, an extremely odd and slightly dysfunctional, but still good family and she thought back to Anna who had led her to this family and she wanted so badly to believe that everything does indeed happen for a reason.

Because Anna's loss was not for nothing.

So she smiled at Daryl as he sauntered over to her, a glass of whiskey in his hand and the bottle of whiskey in the other, "Ya alrigh'?" He asked when he noticed the glass of wine sitting idly on the counter beside her and the blank stare that had been on her face.

She smiled even though her throat clenched because she was not going to let Anna's death have been a mistake. She was not going to dwell and she was going to move on because she loved Anna enough to do that. She loved her enough to keep on going with what Anna had given her.

"'ey, Harls, ya alrigh?" He asked again with a frown on his face.

Harley picked her up glass and just nodded, a small smile still on her face, "Yeah... 'm fine, just thinkin'."

Daryl snorted, "Don' be doin' too much of tha', gonna drive yaself crazy."

"Yeah, suppose you're right." She said as she took a sip of her wine.

Daryl's mouth formed an almost grin and his face was red from the alcohol, "Now drink up." He stuffed a shot glass into her other hand and filled it up with the whiskey that was in his, "Lessee what ya learned in school."

* * *

><p>Harley's head pressed against the cool tile of the shower as the steaming hot water rained down on her. She was a bit dizzy, probably drunker than she thought she was, but that wasn't going to stop her from taking full advantage of the fact that they had running water at their disposal.<p>

She may have spent a bit more time in there than Jenner had told them too, but she had a feeling that everyone else wasn't taking heed to his warnings so why the hell not.

After twenty minutes, she turned the water off and wrapped a towel around herself. She stood in front of the full length mirror in the bathroom finally getting a chance to look at herself for what seemed to be the first time in ages.

Her hair had gotten a bit longer, nearly brushing her collarbone which seemed to be protruding a bit more than usual, then again most of her bones seemed to be doing that. She'd lost a bit of weight while traveling although she still retained those enormous hips of hers, there was just no escaping those.

The bags under her eyes were tinted with a purplish hue showing just how little sleep she had gotten lately and even though she didn't feel tired now, she certainly looked it.

No wonder Jenner said they looked like hell.

Sighing, she ruffled her hair, the excess water splattering in different directions and still wrapped in a towel, she exited the shower, looking up and down the hallway to see if anyone was out and to her luck, no one was. She hurried out of the bathrooms, going into the room where she would be sleeping and was surprised to find a rather clean looking Daryl sitting on her bed, or rather cot, the empty bottle of whiskey hanging limply in his hands.

"Wanted a bit o' company." He said when he noticed her standing at the door with a confused look on her face.

Harley shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, "Coulda waited 'til I came outta the shower and got dressed."

"Did'n' wanna." His words were slurred even more than usual as he approached her, dropping the bottle on the carpeted floor.

Harley didn't try to back away as his arms enveloped her in a tight hug, his cheek resting on her damp hair, "Yer drunk."

Daryl's deep laugh resonated in her ears, "You ain't?"

At the mention of her own sobriety or lack thereof, Harley seemed to relax a bit, her arms twining themselves around his waist, "S'pose I am."

They stood like that for a while, just holding each other in silence until Daryl spoke, abruptly ruining the stillness, "I like bein' around ya." He admitted.

Harley smiled into his shirt realizing that he was confessing just how fond he was of her and although he may not have outright said that he liked her, she knew that's what he meant, "I like bein' around ya, too."

* * *

><p>Harley woke up chilled to the bone with the warm breath of a certain redneck hitting the back of her neck in a rhythmic pattern. She scooted backwards into him, trying to absorb the heat his body was letting off and it took her a few moments to realize that the only thing that was covering her was the towel she had wrapped around herself when she left the shower.<p>

It was with a light, almost inaudible groan that she reluctantly got out of bed, moving away from the only source of heat in the room. She peeked back at the snoozing redneck, making sure he was still sleeping before dropping the towel to the ground, shivering slightly as the cool air hit her skin.

She began rummaging through her bag, coming out with some clothes she had washed before the attack of the camp; a loose pair of shorts and an oversized T-shirt that Glenn had picked up for her while in Atlanta.

Once she was dressed, she turned back around, ready to climb back into bed only to be met with a pair of blue eyes that were staring at her with interest, "Thought you were asleep." Was the only thing she managed to say.

"Was," He croaked, his voice heavy with sleep, "'til ya started movin' 'round so much. Kinda glad I woke up though, that's a nice view ta have."

Harley's eyes narrowed as she picked up a stray pillow from the bed and whacked Daryl over the head with it which didn't even seem to phase him, "Shut up and go back to sleep." She grumbled, crawling back into bed, "S'only three in the mornin'."

Daryl looked over at the digital clock, a foreign sight to him as of lately and noted that it was indeed only three in the morning before turning back to the woman laying beside him. He placed a kiss on top of her head, a slow and lazy one, and draped his arm across her stomach, pulling her into him, "G'night." Harley glanced up at Daryl who had closed his eyes in an attempt to go back to sleep and it seemed as though within seconds he was out like a light.

"Yeah, goodnight." She muttered as she snuggled closer to him.

* * *

><p><strong>A little sappiness for everyone to enjoy and even more DarylHarley interaction or rather Drunk!Daryl/Harley interaction.**

**~Relationship progression~ **

**As always thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts. I'm really happy I'm getting such positive feedback on this :) You guys are the best 3**

**Please review! Critiques are always welcomed!**

**And! If any of you have a Tumblr, follow me! My URL is **_bbyjesus_


	12. Flames

The next morning the pair were awoken by a soft knocking at Harley's door which probably would've went unnoticed had Daryl not been such a light sleeper. He joggled Harley a bit, enough to rouse her from her unconscious state, and then motioned to the door when she peered up at him through sleep ridden eyes.

"Someone's a' tha door." He told her and then motioned for her to see who it was.

With a groan of protest, she reluctantly got up out of bed, shivering from the loss of heat. Stumbling her way over to the door, she opened it to see a very hungover and tired Glenn.

"Hey," He greeted groggily, "Have you seen Daryl? He's not in his room and we were a bit..." His sentence trailed off as he noticed the sleepy redneck strewn across Harley's cot, his legs dangling over the edge. Immediately, a shit-eating grin appeared on his face, "How's that whole ignoring your feelings thing going?"

A scowl appeared on Harley's face, "Fuck off." She said and slammed the door in his face, however, even through the door she could hear his laughter, "Dick." She grumbled and turned back to Daryl who was refusing to move an inch, "C'mon, time to get up." She told him as she tossed her hair up into its usual ponytail.

Daryl made a noise of disapproval but got up regardless, scratching at his scruff. Harley took one look at him and snorted back her urge to giggle at his bedhead; the side that he slept on was completely flattened down while the other stood up at all angles. He began to try and rub the sleep from his eyes and Harley took notice of how childlike it made him seem although she'd never voice that opinion out loud.

"Lessgo." He mumbled as he ruffled his hair back into its customary style, "Hope they made breakfast, 'm starvin'."

* * *

><p>A few strange looks were sent their way when they walked into the kitchen, but those looks quickly shifted to Shane as he sauntered in with four violent red scratches covering the side of his face and neck.<p>

"The hell happened to you?" Someone asked and he simply gave a shrug in return before claiming to have done it in his sleep, although it didn't look like anyone was buying that excuse.

Harley and Daryl loaded up their plates with the eggs that T-Dog had made and Harley thanked him for both her and Daryl, seeing as how Daryl wasn't going to do it.

They stood back from the rest of the group as everyone sat at the table, enjoying their first home cooked breakfast that didn't consist of canned soup or squirrel. If T-Dog hadn't told them, Harley would've never even known that they were powdered eggs she was shoveling into her mouth by the spoonful.

Daryl seemed to be enjoying himself as well despite the massive hangover he had and Harley paused for a moment and wondered if he even remembered what happened last night.

Daryl's blue eyes glanced over at her and his hip bumped gently against hers, knocking her quite literally out of her stupor, "Ya alrigh' Harls?" He asked, once again using the nickname he had given her last night.

Harley nodded, "'m fine." She reassured him as she started to shovel the food back into her mouth at a rapid pace, thoroughly enjoying the fact she was allowed to eat as much as she wanted.

Daryl, however, didn't eat nearly as much as she did and after his first plate of food, he set the plate down and instead took to taking swigs out of a bottle of liquor that was still laying around from the night before.

"Despite what you may think, drinking isn't the cure to a hangover." Harley told him as she finished her food and took to sipping on a glass of orange juice.

He gave her a wink and threw his arm over her shoulder, letting it hang there limply, "Tha's what you think."

Glenn had been the only one to see what had happened as everyone else was completely emerged in their own conversation and when he sent her a sly smile with a raised eyebrow, she simply looked away, trying to hide the grin that was working its way onto her face and ignoring the small palpitations of her heart.

Daryl finished off the bottle and set it aside, pulling Harley a bit closer to him. He wasn't really sure what it felt like to be content, but he was pretty sure this was what it felt like.

* * *

><p>Harley had gone back to her room to change out of her pajamas and when she came back to the kitchen, everyone was filing out of the kitchen following after Jenner.<p>

"Where's everyone goin'?" She asked Dale who was the first to pass by her.

"Dr. Jenner has something to show us." He told her.

She hung back as everyone passed by her and when Daryl came up behind her, his hand found the small of her back and he gently pushed her ahead of him, "Why do I have a feelin' that whatever he's goin' ta show us ain't gonna be good." She grumbled.

"'cause it prolly ain't gonna be good."

* * *

><p>"Can I have a playback of TS-19?" Jenner asked aloud and his computer, Vi, responded.<p>

"Playback of TS-19." Came the computerized voice.

On the main screen, an X-ray image popped up and Carl immediately asked, "Is that a brain?"

Jenner looked back at him, almost smiling down at the little boy, "An extraordinary one." And then the smile dropped form his face and his voice got low, "Not that it mattered in the end."

Everyone watched as the image zoomed in to the stem of the brain and watched as lights flashed within the brain, "What are those lights?" Daryl asked as they continued to flash.

"A person's memories, experiences... everything." Jenner explained, "It's you... something that makes you unique and human."

Harley wasn't surprised when Daryl didn't quite understand what Jenner was saying, "You ever make sense?" He asked.

"They're synapses." Harley piped up from beside Daryl recalling the term from one of her mandatory science classes she took her Freshman year.

"Exactly right." Jenner confirmed, "Electric impulses in a brain that carry messages. They determine everything a person says, does, or thinks from the moment of birth until the moment of death."

"Is that what this is? A vigil?" Rick asked.

"Yes, or rather a playback of a vigil." Jenner told him.

"So, that's a person dying?" Andrea asked as her eyes filled with remorse for whoever it was that had died and had the unfortunate experience of being recorded doing so.

Harley watched with her eyebrows furrowed as the image zoomed back out to the entirety of the brain. Her eyebrows unknitted themselves and her eyes grew wide as the stem of the brain started to turn black and then everything else followed suit.

"What is that?" Glenn asked, his voice trembling.

Jenner began to describe what happens when the disease takes hold of a person and Harley suddenly felt very numb upon the realization that that is what had happened to Amy... and to Anna.

The stem of the brain began to light up again, but with a red hue this time around.

"It restarts the brain?" Lori asked, astonished.

Jenner shook his head, "No, just the brain stem. Basically, it gets them up and moving."

"But they're not alive?" Rick inquired as he stepped forward, speaking for the first time.

"You tell me." Jenner said as he looked back up at the screen, "The human part of the brain doesn't come back; the You part."

He had confirmed everyone's suspicions that these creatures... these Walkers weren't human anymore. They weren't even close.

* * *

><p>Harley and Daryl were in Daryl's room, Daryl already working on another bottle while Harley worked on throwing what little he had into his bag seeing as how he was fit to drink himself into another stupor. She had already packed all of her stuff back up and her bag was currently residing on the floor near the door.<p>

Jenner had given them the news that once the generators in the basement were out of a fuel, the curious clock that they'd seen in the computer room would hit zero and when it did the entire place would be nothing but a pile of flaming rubble and ashes.

"Harls," Daryl called out as she paced in front of the door, "Sit down, would ya." He told her, growing tired of watching her move back and forth frantically.

Harley pursed her lips and shook her head, knowing that if she were to sit down right now, she'd probably end up having a panic attack, "No."

Daryl got up and grabbed her by the shoulders, forcing her to both cease her pacing and look him in the eyes, "It's gonna be alright." He told her as he removed one of the hands from her shoulder and placed it on her head, letting it trail down to her cheek, "Ain't gonna let anythin' happen to ya, alrigh'?"

Harley breathed in deeply, trying to relax just a bit, but to no avail and instead just looked up at Daryl who was staring back at her intently. She became aware of their apparent height differences and just how close they were standing to each other. His breath smelled of whiskey and her eyes shifted from his own to his lips and the thought crossed her mind, but she quickly tossed it right back out.

_Time and a place_, she reminded herself.

There was a click that caught both Harley's and Daryl's attention, "What was that?" He asked looking up at the vent in the ceiling directly above them where the noise came from.

Harley lifted her hand and waved it in front of the vent, "The AC turned off." She frowned.

Just then the lights started to flicker before turning off completely. Daryl went to the door and opened it only to see everyone else was already out in the hallway, questioning Jenner as he walked by, "Hey, what's goin' on?" Daryl asked, "Why's everythin' turnin' off?"

"Power use is being prioritized." Jenner said tersely as he grabbed the bottle that was hanging from Daryl's hand and took a long sip, "Zone Five is shutting itself down."

Daryl grabbed Harley's hand and dragged her with him as he followed after Jenner, "Hey!" He called out, "Hey! What the hell does that mean?" Jenner ignored him and continued to walk which only served to anger Daryl even more as his grip on Harley's hand tightened, "Hey! I'm talkin' to ya! How the hell can a buildin' do that?"

"You'd be surprised."

Harley tugged at Daryl's hand, "Gettin' angry ain't gonna solve anythin'." She told him and he huffed a bit, breathing in deeply through his nose.

"Sittin' around like cows in a slaughter ain't gonna solve anythin' either."

* * *

><p>Everyone was panicked as Jenner led them back to the computer room all the while explaining that all unnecessary power usages would be cut off in order to keep the computers running until the last minute.<p>

Shane looked about ready to break Jenner's neck at that point and he probably would have had Rick not grabbed him before he could do any real damage, "Everybody get your stuff!" Rick yelled, "We're getting out of here, now!"

Harley would have been lying if she said she wasn't the least bit frightened and it only escalated when alarms started going off and the main computer screen turned on, showing the countdown which had just reached thirty minutes.

"Y'all heard Rick! Get your stuff!" Shane shouted and before anyone could even think to run to the doors, they flew up, blocking everyone from leaving.

Harley was sure she was going to puke.

"Did he just lock us in?!" Glenn asked frantically.

"Oh God," Harley mumbled, "Oh God..." And all of a sudden she was all too aware that Daryl's rigid grip was no longer there.

"Sonovabitch!" Daryl growled, running towards Jenner, "You locked us in here!" Shane and T-Dog restrained him and pulled him away from Jenner who sat idly at the computer, not seeming fazed in the least.

"Calm down!" Harley begged, placing her hand on his arm as T-Dog and Shane dragged him back over to her, "Please!"

Daryl shrugged the two men off of him and mumbled something to himself but otherwise calmed down, still huffing and puffing.

"It's better this way." Jenner told Rick.

"What is?!" Rick yelled, "What happens when that clock reaches zero?!" When he received no answer his voice raised a few notches, "What happens?!"

Jenner stood from his seat in an instant and when he did he was in Rick's face, "You know what this place is! We protected the public from very nasty stuff!" There was a moment of silence and he calmed himself down and took his seat, "Int he event of a catastrophic power failure or a terrorist attack for example, HITs will be deployed into the air..."

"HITs?"

"Vi, define."

Vi's computerized voice filled the room and it became painfully obvious what was going to happen to them all in twenty-eight minutes. Carol held onto Sophia, trying to hold back her own tears as her daughter covered her eyes and Rick held onto his own family as Vi continued to tell them what would happen.

Harley had never felt weaker in that moment when she felt tears welling up in her eyes and Daryl pulled her to him, whispering to her, "We're gonna get outta here, okay?"

If she had wanted to go this way; up in a pile of flames and ash, she would've never left her father. All these months of surviving were pointless if this is how they go. All the sacrifices people made, the sacrifices her father made, they were completely and utterly useless.

Harley wanted to live. She wanted nothing more than to stay alive and live to see another day. She didn't want to die.

"It sets the air on fire." Jenner mumbled but everyone could hear him, "No pain."

Daryl let go of Harley once more to hurl the bottle of liquor at the steel door, "Open the damn door!" He shouted.

Shane was right behind him with an axe and one was tossed to Daryl and the two men started to pound away at the door, trying to at least put a dent in it.

Glenn stood next to Harley who hugged herself as she watched the men try to break through the door, "I don't want to die." Glenn said just loud enough for only her to hear.

Harley's head whipped around to look at him, "Ya ain't gonna die, Glenn." She said, "We made it this far. We ain't gonna wind up ash." She said firmly and it was almost an attempt to believe her own words.

She barely even noticed when Daryl rushed past her, axe in the air, trying to take off Jenner's head only to be held back once more.

"Wouldn't it be better to go this way? More compassionate? To just hold your loved ones and wait till the clock runs out?"

There was the sound of a gun being cocked as Shane bounded up the stairs to where Jenner was sitting, "Open the goddamn door!" He screamed as Rick tried to hold him back, "Open the door or I blow your brains out!"

"This is now how we do this." Rick tried to reason with Shane who was muttering something to himself, "If he dies, we all die."

Shane let out a guttural scream and turned his gun just inches away from Jenner's head and put a round of bullets into the computers, sending sparks everywhere.

Harley latched onto Glenn, who was the closest, and dragged him down to the ground with her, the computer system in front of them blocking them from Shane's onslaught.

Glenn grasped at the baseball cap on his head, eyes wide as though he'd just seen his life flash before his eyes, "Thanks." He breathed out.

Harley patted the boy's shoulder, "No problem." She peeked out from behind the computer as the gunshots stopped and saw that Rick had taken control of the situation.

"You done now?" She heard him ask Shane who was on the ground with the butt of the gun to his face.

Harley nearly jumped five feet in the air when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around, seeing Daryl looking down at her and Glenn, "You two alrigh'?" He asked.

She gave a shrug of her shoulders, "Could be better." She joked weakly as she stood up with the help of Daryl and then gave Glenn a hand in getting up.

She looked at the clock again and saw the seconds ticking away, but she tried to ignore the sense of urgency that was building up inside of her. She was not one to resort to violence like Daryl or Shane in the face of stress. She had learned a long time ago that lashing out like that never solved problems and she was glad that Rick seemed to be keeping a level head throughout this entire ordeal.

"I think you're lying." He told Jenner who looked at him confused.

"What?"

"You're lying about there being no hope." Rick clarified, "If that was true you would've taken the easy way out." He stared into Jenner's eyes, urging him to tell everyone why he decided to stay at the CDC when everyone else was abandoning ship, "You chose the hard path... why?"

Jenner shook his head effectively breaking eye contact with Rick, "It doesn't matter."

"No, it does matter." Rick told him, "Why'd you choose to stay?"

"Not because I wanted to." Jenner practically growled as he stood up, "I made a promise." He pointed at the screen, "To her... _my wife_."

"Test Subject 19 was your wife?" Lori asked when everyone else couldn't.

"She begged me to keep going for as long as I could... how could I say no?" As he spoke more softly, the sound of pounding metal against metal became louder and louder.

Harley turned and saw Daryl once more ferociously beating the axe against the door, "Daryl..."

"We want a choice... a chance..." She heard Rick tell Jenner.

"Let us keep trying for as long as we can." Lori pleaded with him as she hugged Carl to her.

"We're not ready to give up yet." Harley spoke and looked directly into Jenner's eyes.

Jenner looked away from her, "I told you, topside is locked down." He made his way over to the keypad that controlled the doors and entered a code. The door flew open and Harley felt just a bit of hope sweep over her.

"Come on!" Daryl yelled to her and she hurriedly made her way over to him tugging Glenn by the sleeve of his T-shirt.

"Let's go." She told the boy.

He was quick to follow along, "Don't have to tell me twice."

When Harley was within arm's reach, Daryl placed his hand on her back and pushed her forward before trailing behind after her. Harley faintly her Jacqui tell T-Dog she was staying and resisted the urge to look back, knowing it would be all the more painful to leave if she did, but when she heard Andrea say the same thing, she did chance a small glance back.

She wished she didn't.

* * *

><p>T-Dog and Daryl were pounding away at the glass which was the only thing between them dying in two minutes and them living, but nothing seemed to be even making a scratch on it.<p>

"The glass won't break?" Sophia asked in a frenzy.

"Rick!" Carol called out as she dug through her bag, "I think I have something that'll help." Shane made a snide remark but when Carol pulled a grenade out from her small knapsack everyone looked at her wide-eyed, "I found this on your first day at the camp while I was washing your clothes."

Rick stared at her for a moment before snatching the grenade away from her and running to the window to set it off.

Everyone ducked as Rick yelled for them to get down and Harley instinctively fell to the ground, her hands covering her head. She barely noticed someone else enclose her with their arms as the grenade exploded with a deafening bang.

She peeked one eye open as she heard the glass shatter and found herself being dragged up from the floor, rather roughly, by Daryl, but she could hardly blame Daryl for being so aggressive since they probably had a little under a minute before the place would be up in flames.

They made a mad dash for their vehicles, taking out any walkers that had been drawn their way by the explosion from the grenade. Harley had taken her gun from where it was securely tucked away in the waistband of her pants and let bullets fly, each hitting its mark as she continued to run to the truck, trailing closely behind Daryl.

There was a wave of relief that washed over her as her and Daryl reached his truck, practically leaping into it, but neither of them had any time to relax as flames erupted from inside the building just as Andrea and Dale made it behind the barriers.

Harley grabbed onto Daryl as they ducked as much as they could in the tiny cab of the truck. The flames quickly died down almost as fast as they appeared and everyone was left staring at the remnants of the CDC.

"Jesus..." Harley breathed heavily.

Both her and Daryl just stared at the smoldering remains, neither of them saying a word. After a moment, Harley's head flopped down onto Daryl's shoulder, sighing as she closed her eyes.

"Ya alrigh'?" Daryl finally asked.

Her eyes fluttered open and she leaned her head back onto the seat of the truck instead of his shoulder, "Can't believe we're alive."

Daryl peered down at her, his breathing finally slowing down to its normal pace after the sprint to his truck. Their eyes didn't leave each other's as they just sat in silence. Harley wasn't sure if it was her who moved first or Daryl, but the butterflies in her stomach ignited as their lips melded together for the first time.

It was short and brief, but Harley still felt her stomach doing flips well after it ended and she decided she wouldn't mind doing it more often.

Daryl wrapped an arm around Harley's shoulders and brought her closer to him as he started his truck up, placing a kiss on her forehead just before they set off, unsure of their destination.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys!~ So sorry about the long wait, but this chapter was 10 pages long, so I guess it was worth the wait? Ahahaha T_T<strong>

**Hope you guys enjoyed! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts, you guys are so great, really, you are. 3**

**Also, I hit 20,000 views some time last week, that's so crazy! **


	13. Sunburn

Harley's grip on the wheel of the truck tightened as Daryl whizzed past her on his motorcycle. He had been circling around the truck since she started driving it about four hours ago and had continued to constantly swerve close to the truck, nearly giving Harley a heart attack each and every time.

If there was one thing she hated more than dead people walking around eating the living it was driving. Completely and utterly hated it.

This loathing could come from a number of things; perhaps her short fuse when it came to the incompetence of the people around her, or it could be the fact her first and only driving experience ended with her almost driving her father's old Ford pick up truck into a telephone pole. Nevertheless, her anxiety has been at an all time high since Daryl put her behind the wheel and his teasing was beginning to make her queasy.

"Jesus fuck Daryl!" She yelled as he veered even closer to the truck with a shit-eating grin on his face.

With a pathetic whimper, Harley's knuckles turned white and she silently wished T-Dog or Glenn would've volunteered to drive the damned thing, or better yet, she wished Daryl would've let them leave the truck in Atlanta, but he wouldn't hear nothing about it.

The group's current destination was Fort Benning after the CDC turned out to be nothing but a dead end and a death trap, the group decided that Fort Benning would be their next best bet despite it being over a hundred miles away. They had managed to scrounge up what little fuel they could and started to make their way to what they had all hoped would be their salvation although they were growing less and less optimistic about the outcome.

* * *

><p>When the caravan started to slow down, Harley nearly slammed on the breaks in a knee-jerk reaction upon realizing everyone was stopping. When the truck came to a halt, she heaved a heavy sigh. She abhorred driving.<p>

Daryl pulled up beside her, "What's goin' on?" She asked him.

"Roads blocked." He told her before revving up his motorcycle and zooming ahead of her to further inspect the situation.

Daryl led the way and the group began to move again, weaving their way in and out of the abandoned cars which looked like a graveyard to Harley. However, it was short lived as the hose of the RV blew and Harley realized they weren't going anywhere anytime soon.

When she saw Rick get out of his car, she threw the truck in park and followed suit. The group had gathered as Dale ranted about the broken hose in the RV and then everyone seemed to realize what they were stranded in the middle of.

All around them was a plethora of supplies; fuel, food, probably water if they looked hard, and there was definitely a radiator hose or two around.

Daryl was already going through the back of a nearby SUV, looking through the suitcases in the back, coming out with a plaid shirt which he held up in front of himself and sent a look over to Harley who gave a roll of her eyes.

"This is a graveyard." Lori said, silencing the chatter that was going on amongst the group, "I don't know how I feel about this."

Harley couldn't deny the fact it was eerie just being here with so many dead bodies all around them, but it wasn't the first time she's had to sift through the belongings of the dead as a means of survival, "Beggars can't be choosers." Harley said and set out to begin her rummaging.

"Let's take a walk around, gather what ya can." Shane announced and everyone dispersed in search of whatever they could find that would be useful.

Harley was already searching a nearby car that was clear of any dead bodies and had suitcases of clothes and other items. Carol and Lori were nearby, looking unsure about the whole thing, "Best if ya don't go near the cars with dead bodies." She told them, "Lessens the guilt just a bit when ya take their stuff."

Lori gave a slight grimace but nodded either way and Carol offered a small smile, knowing that the girl only meant well. Harley gave a sigh as they walked away.

The other women around camp were pleasant to be around, but they were content with the housewife rituals bestowed upon them. Harley just wasn't the type of person to sit back and let the men take charge.

"Can't be helped." She muttered as she threw a pair of jeans that were her size into her bag, not knowing how much longer her current pair were going to last her.

"Come over here and help us!" Daryl called out to her as he broke the fuel covers off of cars for T-Dog to syphon the fuel out.

"Be right there!" She called out as she stuffed a few shirts into her bag not bothering to look at the sizes. She made her way over to where Daryl and T-Dog had been, but Daryl had seemed to wander off somewhere else and T-Dog was left sucking the fuel out of the cars by himself, "Hey, wher-"

Daryl appeared out of nowhere, forcing her low to the ground, "Get under the car." He whispered to her, his eyes not on her but on something in the distance.

She stole a glance as she slid under the car and the sheer amount of walkers that was heading their way terrified her. She had seen plenty of walkers within the past few months, they mostly wandered around on their own, sometimes in a group of five or ten in more populated areas, but the size of the group heading their way now? That was a herd, if anything else.

When Daryl didn't slide under the car with her, she called out frantically to him in a hushed voice, "Where are you going?!"

He motioned for her to be quiet as he stealthily crept along side the cars and disappeared from her sight, leaving her with nothing but anxiety. She was silently cursing him as the walkers began to stagger her way and she struggled to keep control of her breathing.

It felt like an eternity before the clumsy footsteps passed and Harley peeked out a bit from underneath the car back towards where the herd had come from and saw that there were no more stragglers. She crawled out just as Daryl merged from behind a barricade of cars, dragging a bloodied T-Dog with him.

"What the hell happened?!" Harley asked T-Dog as she caught sight of the enormous cut on his arm and all the blood that stained his shirt.

"Cut my arm on a door." T-Dog told her as he breathed heavily, the amount of blood loss taking its toll on him, "Hurt like a bitch."

She took T-Dog's other side, "I can only imagine." She mumbled as her and Daryl helped him make his way back to the RV where everyone was staring worriedly at the woods next to the highway.

When they took notice of Carol crying and no sign of Sophia, Harley felt her heart drop.

They just didn't have any luck.

* * *

><p>There was a horrible and disturbing silence that creeped its way through the group as Rick trudged up the bank to the highway, alone.<p>

It was Carol who broke the silence.

"W-where is she?"

* * *

><p>"Ya sure ya wanna stay back?" Daryl asked Harley as she fiddled with her bent bat.<p>

Rick, Daryl, Shane, and Glenn were going off into the woods to look for Sophia, leaving everyone else at the highway and after what happened last time so many members of their group left, Harley wasn't about to leave everyone else here with little to no protection, what with T-Dog injured and Andrea barely knowing how to work her gun properly.

Harley gave him a small smile of reassurance, "Best if I stay here." She told him, "'case somethin' happens."

Daryl relented, leaning in to place a kiss on her forehead, something he had begun to do when no one else was looking, "Be careful then, keep yer eyes open."

"You too." She said and before he could walk away she tugged at his hand, "Bring her back, okay?"

Daryl stared at her for a moment longer and then nodded in response.

* * *

><p>Harley was sitting on top of the RV, Dale's binoculars hanging around her neck and her feet dangling off the edge of the RV as she peered into the distance, the highway stretching for miles ahead.<p>

"Everything alright, Harley?" Dale called up to her as he packed away some of the supplies they found.

"Yup," Harley told him, "Ain't a soul for miles." When she caught the solemn look Dale was giving her, she smiled sheepishly, "Prob'ly coulda worded that better, huh?"

Dale just shook his head and smiled, "It's alright."

Harley's gaze shifted over to Andrea and Lori who were trying to keep Carol busy by going through some other vehicles. They were a few yards away, now knowing to keep within ear's distance in case another herd of walkers happens to come through.

"You can go gather supplies with them if you'd like, I'll take watch." Dale told her as he rummaged through a toolbox that Glenn had found.

Harley bit her lip as she contemplated for a moment before she shook her head, "I think I'm a bit more useful up here."

Dale squinted up at her, "Wouldn't hurt ya to make a few friends. I think you're gonna be stuck with us for the long haul."

Harley gave a sigh as she watched Dale walk away, unintentionally glaring at his bucket hat. She knew he meant well by his words, but making friends was not something she was particularly good at, even pre-apocalypse.

She had found her niche early on in middle school when she joined the Drama Club after school. She didn't make very many close friends throughout her middle school and high school years, but there were a few people from her hometown that she had kept in touch with after she went away to college.

She wondered if they were dead.

* * *

><p>When Shane and Glenn finally appeared, tromping up the bank to the highway, Carol stifled a sob until Shane reassured her that Rick and Daryl were still out looking for Sophia.<p>

"Daryl found her tracks." Shane told her, "She'll be back in no time."

Harley had piped up from her place on top of the RV, "Dary'll find her." She told Carol, having the utmost confidence in the man, "Don't you worry."

Carol gave her a weak smile before turning back tot he edge of the highway where Shane and Glenn came up through and she settled herself there, looking into the woods for any signs of Sophia.

"Alright people, let's start moving these cars outta the way so we can double back to the bypass that Glenn found on the map." Shane ordered and looked up at Harley, "You good with keeping watch?"

Harley gave him a thumbs up, "A-okay, deputy."

* * *

><p>Harley's skin felt like it was on fire as the harsh Georgian sun beat down upon her with no relent. Her flimsy white tank top clung to her skin from the sweat and her jeans were rolled up above her knee after she had felt sweat forming on the undersides of her knees, a place where you should never be sweating.<p>

Out of the corner of her eye she could see Carl weaving through the crowd of cars and trucks while Lori was off rummaging through another car looking for clothes, "Fuckin' kid." Harley mumbled as she kept an eye on him through the binoculars, becoming worried when he disappeared behind a truck. Just as she was about to go call for Dale to see where the boy went, he reappeared, a black wrap of objects in his arms.

She watched his exchange with Shane and Lori, frowning when she saw him walk away dejected, coming towards the RV. Lori and Shane continued to converse with each other and Harley turned her head away from the display, "Ain't none of my business." She reminded herself.

Carl sat on the tailgate of a nearby car after having given the wrap of weapons to Dale who had smiled tenderly at the boy.

"Hey," Harley called down to the boy, "You wanna come keep watch with me?" She asked, "I'm feelin' a bit lonely up here all on my own."

Carl glanced up at her, squinting from the bright sun, and nodded after a few moments before clambering up the ladder of the RV. He took a seat next to Harley who offered the boy the binoculars.

They sat in silence for a while, Carl looking through the binoculars keen to keep an eye out for anything that might be dangerous and Harley focusing on the woods in front of them.

Neither Shane nor Lori had come over to the boy, possibly because they were both busy clearing a path or they just hadn't realized where he had gone.

"I hate being treated like a kid." Carl finally said as he lowered the binoculars from his eyes.

Harley let out a bark of laughter at the boy's confession, "You _are_ a kid." He bit his lip, appearing flushed at Harley's statement and was about to respond, but Harley beat him to the punch, "We're all going through a pretty shitty situation and it'll do you no good if you act like a spoiled brat whenever you're not treated like a grown up. If ya want your mom and dad to treat you like an adult, ya gotta act like an adult." She told him, "But, don't be in such a rush to grow up. You won't know what you're missin' out on until it's far too late."

He said nothing else on the matter and just sat beside her until the sun began to set and Lori called out for him to come and get something to eat. She offered Harley dinner as well, but Harley refused because her stomach had started to churn with uneasiness due to the fact Rick and Daryl still hadn't returned. It was getting dark and the woods were never a good place to be when it was dark, let alone with walkers wandering around.

"Where's my gun?" She heard Andrea say to Dale, "You have no right to take it!"

"You don't need that just now, do ya?" Dale asked, his eyes not making contact with Andrea's as he talked in a calm manner trying to diffuse the situation.

"My father gave it to me. It's mine." She told him.

Dale's head was still downturned, his hat covering his eyes making it hard for Harley to see the expression on his face, but his voice was soft, almost pleading, "I can hold onto it for you."

Andrea wasn't taking that for an answer and her voice raised a little all the while Harley was quietly wondering whether or not she should abandon her watch position and give the two some privacy as they argued, "Or you could give it back to me."

Shane peered over at them from where he was standing just a few feet away and decided he was the best person to intervene, "Everything cool?" He asked the pair before his eyes flickered up to Harley who just gave a shrug of her shoulders.

"No." Andrea told him, "I want my gun back."

Dale finally looked up, glancing over at Shane before his gaze settled on Andrea, "I don't think that's a good idea right now."

"Why not?" Shane asked.

"I'm not comfortable with it."

Shane shifted his weight from one leg to another before taking a deep breath as he mulled over his options, "Truth is," He began, "...the less weapons we have floating around camp, the better."

Andrea's anger turned from Dale to Shane, "You turning over your weapon?" She asked him and before he could give a response, she looked up at Harley who now was trying to look anywhere else but at the angry blonde below her, "What about you? You gonna turn over your gun?"

Harley tried to ignore the irritation that prodded at her but when she heard Andrea scoff, she could feel it flow through her veins as she whipped her head around, "I know how to _use _my gun." She hissed at Andrea who looked a bit shocked at Harley's sudden rush of anger, "Don't drag me into your petty arguments. I am_ not _apart of this."

Andrea looked as though she was about to say something as she regained her bearings but Shane interrupted her, "Exactly." He said and pointed at Harley as though she had said something profound, "I've been trained in my weapon and by the looks of how Harley shoots, so has she." Harley resisted the urge to swell with pride, "That's what everyone in this group needs; training. Meanwhile, I think it's best if Dale keeps them all accounted for."

Andrea rolled her eyes, huffing as she turned and walked away although Harley had a feeling she wasn't going to let this go as easily as she seemed to be.

"Mind telling me what that was about?" Shane asked Dale who simply shook his head as if to say he'd tell him about it later.

"They're back!" Harley heard Glenn shout and she just about jumped off the RV when she saw Daryl and Rick appear from the woodworks, however, her heart sunk when she noticed Sophia once again wasn't with them.

"You didn't find her?" Carol's voice cracked.

"Her trail went cold, we'll pick it up again first light." Rick told her.

Carol gripped the hem of her shirt, "You can't leave my daughter out there alone; to spend the night in the woods."

"It ain't no good to be trackin' in the dark," Daryl spoke up, "...we'd be trippin' over ourselves and more people would get lost."

"But she's twelve, she can't be out there on her own!"

Harley couldn't possibly know how Carol felt, but she knew that the woman's heart must've been breaking. After suffering through years of abuse, she had finally gotten rid of her abuser, but now, the one thing she had in her life that matters the most to her, was gone.

Rick grabbed Carol by the shoulders as she became frantic, "We know she was out there. You can't panic."

* * *

><p>"Ya got sunburned." Daryl gingerly touched Harley's reddened cheeks, careful not to cause her any pain, "The hell did ya do all day?"<p>

Harley grabbed his hand and placed it flush against her cheeks, his hands which were oddly cold, provided a bit of relief to Harley's face which felt as though someone had doused it with gasoline and lit it on fire.

She let out a sigh of content and leaned into his hand, enjoying the cool sensation, "Kept watch." She told him, "Suppose there is a reason for Dale's hat, after all." She joked and Daryl just smirked, crawling onto the tailgate of the truck she sat on.

"Suppose we should get to bed; gonna be up early tomorrow to look for the little girl."

Inside the back of the truck they were sitting in was a makeshift bed made from a bunch of blankets Harley had found earlier that day. Daryl laid down first as Harley pulled the tailgate of the truck up to shut it.

Daryl held one arm in the air, motioning for Harley to come to him which she did with little argument. As she cuddled up to him, the prickly hairs on his chin poking at her forehead, she was reminded of their drunken night at the CDC.

Daryl abruptly pulled away from her causing Harley to look up at him with confusion, "What's wrong?" She asked.

Without saying a word, he placed a firm kiss on her lips while his other hand wandered to her hip, slipping itself underneath her tank top and traveling a small distance up her side before it rested on her first set of ribs, his thumb rubbing light circles on her skin.

He kissed her again and again, each time she kissed back just as fervently, her fingers entangling themselves in his hair as she pulled him closer to her.

They kept quiet despite the fair distance they were from any of the other members of their group.

Daryl's hand explored the curves of her body while Harley dragged her hand down his chest, gripping at his shirt as the kissing became more tenacious. Daryl got more daring and his hand ventured further up her shirt as his mouth moved down to her neck, placing light kisses down her chin and jaw before he bit down on her neck, nearly causing Harley to cry out in surprise.

She sucked in a deep breath, holding back her yelp as her grip on his shirt tightened, her other hand coming up to clutch at his hair once again and then all at once it stopped.

Daryl's hand was no longer under her shirt and his lips no longer on her skin.

The disappointment she felt as he drew away quickly vanished as he once again pulled her to him, regaining the original position they were in with her head just underneath his chin and his arms wrapped around her.

"G'night." He whispered to her as he placed on final kiss on the top of her head.

Harley's lips brushed against the base of his neck, "Night."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out, I'm nearing the end of my semester so I've been swamped with projects and papers that are all due at the same time.<strong>

**Anyway, my computer is about to die in about 15 minutes and my charger is no longer working, so I won't be able to work on anymore chapters until I get a new charger unfortunately, hopefully that will be within the next week.**

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts. It's insane how much positive feedback I have gotten for this story and it really just warms my heart that you guys like it so much.**

**Please leave a review and tell me what you think of this chapter!**


	14. Church Bells

Daryl was, unsurprisingly, up before Harley and moved her arm carefully from his waist before sitting up in the bed of the truck, already feeling the heat of the day even though the sun was barely peaking above the horizon. He rubbed at his eyes, trying to focus his thoughts as he glanced around, seeing no sign that anyone else, besides Glenn who had taken watch for the night, was up.

He looked back at Harley, his eyes still heavy with sleep as they stared intently at her face, which was scrunched up against her makeshift pillow. She looked younger when she slept; she didn't have that hard look to her, the look she accumulated from months of trying to survive by herself.

His calloused fingertips grazed against the sides of her sunburned face and then to her forehead, tracing the faint wrinkle lines that were already forming and he wanted to laugh; barely into her twenties and she was already getting wrinkles, not that he'd tell he that, he didn't think she'd take too kindly to that comment.

Daryl liked her. Sure, he wasn't in love, not yet at least, but he liked her more than anyone else who was left and that must've meant something.

For a moment, he wondered what it would be like if the world hadn't gone to shit, if their paths would've ever crossed and if in some alternate reality they were sitting in the bed of his truck, same as they are now, but instead they were parked out by a lake near his old house. Maybe he'd still be here, stroking her face, which would be free of wrinkles and he'd still be wearing sleeveless shirts, albeit they'd be a bit cleaner and maybe he'd be in love and maybe she would, too.

Daryl snorted to himself, "Ain't no way that'd happen."

"Ain't a good sign to be talkin' to yerself." Harley's one eye was squinting up at him, trying to stay open despite the sleep that was attempting to force it shut, "It time to get up?"

Daryl's hand ran through her bangs which were matted against her forehead and a bit disheveled, "Yeah, gotta start searchin' again soon, don't wanna waste no daylight."

Harley nodded and pushed away the drowsiness that was trying to coax her back into her deep slumber. With much protest from the rest of her body, she pushed herself up into a sitting position and immediately wanted to lay back down, "Anyone else up?"

Daryl shook his head, "No one except the Chinaman." He told her and jerked his thumb in the direction of Glenn who was perched atop the RV with Dale's gun in his hand and the binoculars around his neck.

"He's Korean." Harley corrected him as she yawned and went to rub her face only to immediately recoil her hand as her skin burned to the touch, "Wish I had some fuckin' Aloe right about now." She grumbled as she gingerly touched her face.

"S'yer own fault, shouldn't've stayed out in the sun that long in only a tank top."

Harley gave a roll of her eyes and waved him off, "Yeah, yeah."

* * *

><p>The sun was now high in the sky and beating down upon them much to Harley's chagrin. Her skin was on fire and she was forced to wear her jacket as well as one of Dale's spare hats to keep the sun from her already burnt face.<p>

She felt ridiculous.

"I feel ridiculous."

Daryl gave her a pat on her hatted head, "Ya look fine."

"Yer just sayin' that."

Daryl didn't say anything back and settled for a very slight smile and a light tap on the small of her back, nudging her over to where the others were gathered.

Rick spread out the weapons Carl had found the previous day across the hood of a car, "Alright, everyone takes a weapon."

Andrea was quick to speak up upon seeing the array of weapons that were presented to the group, "These aren't the kind of weapons we need. What about the guns?"

"We've been over that." Shane said from behind Harley and Daryl, "Four of us have guns. Daryl, Rick, Harley, and myself. We can't have people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles."

"It's not the trees I'm worrying about." Andrea grumbled.

"What if someone fires at the wrong time and a herd happens to be passing by?" Shane asked, "Then it's game over for everyone, so you need to get over it."

Harley as well as everyone else knew that Shane was right. The knives and hatchets that Carl had found were a lot more useful than Andrea gave them credit for. They were much like Daryl's crossbow in that they were silent and wouldn't attract the attention that gunshots would. It would make it easier for their search party to enter the woods without drawing unwanted attention to themselves.

"Harley, you takin' one?" Rick asked her as everyone else stepped forward to take a weapon.

Harley herself had a hunting knife on her along with her bat so she shook her head, "Nah, got ol' reliable here." She gestured to her bat which had seen better days.

"Keep quiet, keep sharp. Keep space between you, but always keep within eyesight of each other." Rick told everyone.

* * *

><p>The search party was trailing through the woods single file, Harley following behind Daryl who was leading the group. It had been about twenty minutes into their search when they spotted what looked like a camping ground not too far away.<p>

Daryl slowed down, his steps becoming light and everyone else followed suit as Rick shushed them, quieting the group into an anxious silence as they all crouched low to the ground.

"What do you suppose could be in there?" Shane asked as he crept up beside Daryl.

"Could be a whole bunch of things in there." Daryl said as he began to creep closer to the campsite, his hunter instincts taking over.

Harley followed closely behind Daryl, her knife in one hand and bat in the other. Her footsteps were light despite her heavy combat boots and even though the circumstances were grim, she felt at home moving through the woods in such a manner, almost as if she were stalking a deer during a hunt.

She could feel her heart in her throat as she, Rick, and Shane stopped a fair distance away from the tent while Daryl continued on, his knife out and ready to attack. He examined the tent from a safe distance before motioning to Rick who called Carol and the others over and then told Carol to call out to Sophia, to see if she was in the tent.

No one moved as Carol gently called out to her daughter. They were all watching the flap of the tent closely for any signs of movement, hoping that at any moment the little girl would emerge from the tent.

But nothing happened.

Daryl slowly unzipped the flap fully and slipped inside, coughing as a gust of a foul stench hit him. He disappeared from the others' sight and Carol called out to him, looking for some sign that her daughter was in there.

When he came out, they all looked at him expectedly, "Some guy," He told them, "He did what Jenner said and 'opted out'." He tossed his crossbow across his shoulders, "Ain't that what he called it?"

Harley felt herself deflate a bit, but immediately stood alert when the sound of church bells echoed through the woods.

Everyone was sent running towards the noise which grew louder and louder and soon they were standing in front of a small church, nothing but their ragged breaths and church bells reverberating around them.

Shane was the first one to speak, "It doesn't have a steeple." He said, "This can't be the right church."

Rick ignored him and took off running, everyone following as they weaved through the headstones that made up the graveyard near the church. They approached the red doors of the entrance, Daryl and Rick taking the lead with their weapons on hand in case they found anything unwanted inside. Pushing the doors open, the group was met with a few walkers sitting in the pews. They turned at the sound of the door opening and began to stagger towards the group. Rick, Daryl, and Shane didn't give them much of a chance to advance too far before they'd implanted their knives into the walkers' skulls. Harley paced around the pews as Rick called out for Sophia before she came to a stop in front of the statue of Jesus on the cross at the head of the church.

She opened her mouth as if she was going to say something but recoiled and let out a small huff at her own silly notions; lot of help praying would do nowadays. She wouldn't deny that within the first few weeks of being out on her own, living in fear, she had spent many nights praying, hoping that her prayers would reach the ears of whatever higher power that be, but all she was met with was death and chaos.

Daryl was at her side, breathing heavily after having taken out a walker, "JC, you takin' requests?" He said.

"I'm tellin' y'all, we got the wrong church, it's got no steeple. There's no steeple." Shane told Rick once more, but as soon as he uttered that sentence, church bells began to ring once more causing the entire group to rush out of the church, rounding one of the corners where the bell sound was coming from a speaker on the side of the building.

Glenn rips open the box connected to the speaker and unhooks it, sighing in frustration.

"It's a timer... it's hooked up to a timer." Daryl explains.

There was silence for a moment before Carol announced that she was going to go back in the church. Everyone save for Lori, Shane, and Andrea followed her into the church, staying towards the entrance as she went and knelt before the statue of Jesus where she began to pour her heart out, begging God to punish her and not her daughter.

Harley tried not to let the woman's words tug at her heartstrings, but she couldn't help feeling sympathetic for Carol. Harley couldn't understand how there could be a God when an innocent, little girl like Sophia was lost and possibly dead somewhere and then she was reminded of Anna and her heart stung and throat constricted.

She sucked in a deep breath as Carol finished praying and sat at the front pew with Lori who had rejoined the group.

* * *

><p>The air was thick with tension on the way back to the highway. Shane, Carl, and Rick had left the group to continue their search for Sophia, leaving Daryl with the others to guide them back to the highway.<p>

Andrea's constant stink eye didn't go unnoticed by Lori who was giving Harley side glances the entire time, knowing that Harley had picked up on it as well. Harley would just give her a shrug knowing that Andrea wasn't going to let this one go.

It also didn't go unnoticed that Carol was in fact blaming Rick for her daughter missing which was seen in her constant questioning of Rick and the decisions he was making.

"This is it? This is the plan?" Carol asked as they all stopped to rest.

It didn't take long for Andrea to make a snide comment towards Lori about the gun Daryl had given her before they parted from Rick, "You want it?" Lori asked Andrea, handing her the gun, "I'm sick of the looks you're giving me." Sitting down on the log next to where Carol had sat, she looked at Carol, "Honey, I can't begin to understand what you're going through, but you have got to stop blaming Rick for this. I see it in your face every single time you look at him. When Sophia ran, he didn't hesitate did he? Not for a second! I-I don't know that any of us would have gone after her or made the hard decisions that he had to make or that anyone could have done it any differently." She looked to everyone who remained silent, "He is not perfect, but if you think you can do this without him, go ahead. No one is stopping you." With that said she took a long swig from her water bottle only looking up when Andrea went to hand back the gun to her.

"We should keep going." Andrea said.

Harley hung in the back of the group as they continued on, nodding towards Lori when she had looked back at her almost to say she had handled it well.

It wasn't but a couple of minutes later that they heard a gunshot in the distance.

* * *

><p><strong>I suck so bad at updating, I'm so sorry. T_T<strong>

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts!**

**Please review and let me know what you think of the story! **


	15. Welcome to the Farm

It was an odd series of events that led Harley, Glenn, and T-Dog to the front of the Greene Family farm.

The sun had set long ago as they looked on at the lit up house and Glenn asked, "So, do we just ring the bell? It looks like people live here..." He looked to Harley and T-Dog, receiving just a shrug of indifference from Harley.

"We're past that kind of stuff, aren't we? Having to be considerate." T-Dog said as he began to trudge up the steps with Glenn and Harley following him.

"Close the gate up the road?" A voice asked from the shadows of the porch, startling the three.

The woman, Maggie, who had road up on her horse like a knight in shining armor and bashed a walker in the head with a bat the day before when she came to tell Lori that Carl had been shot.

She was close to Harley and Glenn's age and very pretty. At least, Harley knew Glenn thought so from the way he stammered in response to her question, "Y-yeah we closed it. D-did the latch and everything." Harley thought he might stop at that, but he continued, "Hello, again. We met before... briefly."

Maggie gave him a smile, "Yeah, I remember."

"We're here to help." Harley told her and noticed the way Maggie's eyes lingered on T-Dog and the wrapped up cut on his arm.

"I wasn't bit. Cut my arm pretty badly, though." He said and Maggie nodded as she got up from the chair, telling him that they'd have a look at it and invited them inside.

T-Dog followed her into the house and as Harley walked past Glenn, she muttered, "Geez, Glenn, keep it in your pants." She threw him a wink before sighing wistfully, "I remember when you use to stutter around me like that." She chuckled as his face flushed and he scrambled into the house behind her.

Maggie led them into the room where Rick and Lori sat with Carl, an older man, who they assumed to be Maggie's father sitting at the end of the bed. Rick looked a little worse for wear and Harley didn't know how he was handling all this stress.

"Hey, we're here, okay?" Glenn said a bit awkwardly, not knowing what else someone could possibly say to a couple whose child had just been shot.

Lori spoke when she knew Rick would not, "Thank you." She told them, truly appreciative of the fact they had come all this way to help.

"If you need anything, let us know."

Harley walked over to the old man, holding out the bag of antibiotics for him, "We brought these hoping ya could find some use for them."

The old man accepted the bag with a tight smile, "Thank you. Every little bit helps." He told her and she nodded looking to Lori and Rick, finding Lori giving her a strained smile which she returned although she didn't much feel like smiling right now.

She joins T-Dog, Glenn, and Maggie in the living room where a blonde woman named Patricia is inspecting T-Dog's arm, a frown on her face. Glenn excuses himself and walks outside to the porch. Harley watches as he walks out and scowls a bit, knowing whatever it was that was running through his mind wasn't good.

"I'm gonna have to stitch it up." Patricia tells T-Dog and he just nods. Harley is pretty sure he's on the verge of passing out, if his bleary eyes and the thick sheen of sweat on his skin is any indication.

No one noticed Maggie leave and Harley jokingly offers T-Dog her hand to squeeze while Patricia stitches up his arm which unsurprisingly, he takes, grunting out, "Don't tell no one about me havin' to hold your hand, got it?"

Harley makes a motion with her free hand, indicating her lips are sealed, "Your secret is safe with me, _Theodore_."

He told her she was lucky he didn't hit women or else she'd have received a swat for being such a smartass. Harley just grins in response.

* * *

><p>Most of the others had turned in for the night, Maggie offering both Glenn and T-Dog residence in one of the guest rooms upstairs. T-Dog had immediately gone upstairs, the fever from his infected arm finally breaking and leaving him completely fatigued. Glenn followed soon after, but Harley stayed in the living room, rifling through some of the books on the tiny bookshelf in the corner after asking Maggie's permission.<p>

She was a couple chapters into a ragged Nancy Drew book when she thought she heard noises coming from the room down the hall where Carl and his parents were. When the noises did not stop, she cautiously put down the book before making her way to the room, peering into the room where she saw Carl convulsing on the bed, Rick and Lori were standing at the side, distressed looks on their faces while Hershel was making sure the boy wouldn't hurt himself while he was having the seizure.

When the boy finally stilled, Hershel began to examine him, checking his pupils and pulse, "His pressure has bottomed out. There's not enough blood gettin' to the brain." Hershel explained and Rick quickly volunteered to give more blood for his son despite already having given blood twice before that day.

"I can't do that, Rick." Hershel told him, "You're barely on your feet as it is. You'll go into a coma or have a heart attack if I take anymore blood from you."

Harley knocked softly on the door, gaining everyone's attention, "I'm Type O Negative." She announced, "You can use my blood, right?"

Hershel smiled softly at the girl and gestured her over as he took out his kit, "Gonna be a slight pinch." He told her once she had settled down in the seat at the end of the bed. She just nodded, telling him to go ahead.

* * *

><p>Harley was chewing on the peanut butter sandwich Maggie had made her, a thoughtful look on her face. Maggie was quick to notice, asking her if she didn't like the sandwich. Harley quickly shook her head, "No." She reassured the farmer's daughter, "No, it's just..." Harley grinned a bit, "I haven't had peanut butter in a really long time."<p>

Maggie smiled at her, "More than happy ta make you a peanut butter sandwich anytime ya like."

"You're gonna regret that." Harley told her.

* * *

><p>It was nearly dawn before Shane arrived with the supplies for Carl's surgery. Maggie had told Harley that a man named Otis, Patricia's husband, had gone with him but it seemed that Otis wasn't with him when he arrived back on the farm.<p>

Harley was never particularly good at deciding whether or not someone was lying and she was often referred to as gullible by her brother who more than a dozen times had her fooled with some far off lie he had concocted more often than not on the spot, but there was something in Shane's eyes as he told them how Otis had sacrificed himself when they were swarmed by walkers that just doesn't seem _right_.

It would probably be best not to mention it to Rick who embraced the man, whispering comforting words to Shane saying Otis wanted to make it right, considering he was the one to put Carl in such a condition.

Things were beginning to get a bit more complicated.

* * *

><p>Early in the morning Daryl, Andrea, Dale, and Carol arrived with the RV. Shane, T-Dog, and Glenn were off helping Hershel's family collect rocks to mark Otis' grave which would be left empty since there was likely nothing left to bury.<p>

Once Shane had arrived with the supplies, Hershel immediately began to prep Carl for surgery, knowing if they waited any longer the boy would not make it to first light. The surgery went smoothly, as smoothly as a surgery could go considering most of the equipment Hershel had was most likely used for animals and not humans. Rick and Lori holed themselves up in the room after his surgery, waiting anxiously for him to wake up, which he did not too long after the rest of their group had arrived at the farm.

A search was coordinated after Otis' funeral when Maggie brought the group a map of the county. Daryl and Harley had already begun to mark areas of the map off as places they've searched and places they should double back to.

Rick was handing out orders, saying that he along with Shane and Daryl would take to the woods in search of Sophia, but that plan was quickly squashed by Hershel who wouldn't allow him or Shane to leave since Shane's ankle had been injured last night and Rick had given too much blood.

"I'll go by myself then." Daryl told them although in the back of his mind, he knew that wasn't likely to happen.

Harley was quick to step up, "I'll go with you. Ain't good to be goin' into the woods by yourself nowadays." Daryl didn't try to argue with the girl, knowing by now it would be futile.

* * *

><p>"I'm gonna go see how Carl's doin' before we leave." Harley announced as she finished packing her bag for their trip into the woods. Daryl nodded as he continued to check his bolts, making sure they were as sharp as they could be.<p>

Lori was sitting by Carl's bedside, stroking his hand as she spoke to him softly, a smile on her face. Carl seemed to barely be able to keep his eyes open as he slurred his words, asking his mom where his dad was.

Harley peeked her head in, "Knock, knock." Lori and Carl both looked over at her, a tiny smile lighting up on Carl's face as Harley entered the room, "How ya doin' ,kiddo?" Harley asked as she ruffled his hair, sitting on the edge of the bed opposite of Lori.

She could tell he was still in pain, but was putting on a brave front for his mother who had noticeable bags under her swollen, red eyes, "'m okay." He mumbled.

"You should sleep." She told him, "You'll get better quicker." He didn't need to be told twice because it was not two seconds later that he closed his eyes and his breathing deepened. Harley continued to run her fingers through his short brown hair, looking a bit sad as she did.

"Thought you weren't much of a kid person?" Lori asked, making an attempt to lighten the mood with a teasing question.

Harley gave a shrug as she made to leave, stopping in the doorway, "They grow on you." She said before giving Lori a thoughtful look, "Kinda like a fungus!"

Lori laughed lightly as Harley retreated from the room, setting out to find Daryl who had both of their packs in hand as he stood next to Rick. She only just managed to catch the end of their conversation.

"You don't owe us anything." She heard Rick tell Daryl.

Daryl responded a bit coolly, "My other plans fell through." Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Harley coming up to them, "You ready?"

Harley nodded, sending Officer Friendly a salute, "See ya later." She called out as she and Daryl headed into the woods, both determined that today was the day they'd find the little girl.

* * *

><p><strong>I seem to go through these random spurts of updating a shit ton and then not updating for a month. I hope you all will forgive me for this.<strong>

**This chapter is a bit on the shorter side, as will be the next one probably. I'm skimming a bit through the first few episodes of the second season in order to get my own storyline moving a bit more quickly. Within the next two chapters I'll be deviating from the plot of the show.**

**Also, not a whole lot of Daryl/Harley going on, because I felt the need to let her build up her relationships with the others in the group, she can't always be around Daryl and be that ~clingy girlfriend~**

**Hope you guys liked this chapter for all of its simplicity! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts. I really do have the best readers :) You guys always leave me such great and positive reviews, it makes my heart happy.**

**Stay tuned, I might have two chapters up tomorrow since we're currently in a State of Emergency here in NY due to the snow storm that's going on.**

**Btw, if any of you have a Tumblr, follow me! My URL is **_bbyjesus_


	16. Flowers

It wasn't as hot as it normally was in the woods today. Harley figured they were nearing Autumn; it was probably around late August, nearly September. Andrea had been keeping track of the days prior to them leaving the quarry, but that was before Amy had died.

There was a fair bit of distance between Harley and Daryl as they trekked through the woods. Harley was keeping watch for walkers as Daryl focused on trying to gain Sophia's trail again which wasn't easy since it had been nearly three days since Sophia was lost. She tried not to think back on all of those crime shows she watched before the outbreak. Seventy-two hours; that was their window. After that it would be a miracle if they found her, alive that is.

Looking at Daryl ahead of her, she felt herself smile a bit weakly. She didn't know what it was, but he was determined to find this little girl and he was more optimistic than the others about it.

"This way." Daryl called out to her, "I think I picked up some tracks."

Harley followed him, glancing down at the tracks that he had found; they were tiny, a child's, "Better than nothing." She said.

The trail led them to a small abandoned home which looked as though it has seen better days. Daryl was eager to search the house, but approached it cautiously knowing that it may have some less than alive guests. He motioned for Harley to stay back a few feet as he pressed himself up against the wall next to the door, knocking on it firmly before glancing into the window.

When they heard nothing stir within the house they entered it, Harley wincing as the floorboards creaked under their feet. The place seemed a bit upturned, like whoever lived here had left in a rush.

"Look at this." Harley said as she picked up a can of sardines that looked as though it had just recently been opened, "This is recent." She said, "Probably within the last couple of days."

Daryl looked at the can contemplatively, "She was here." He determined and they continued to search the house, Daryl finding a small makeshift bed in one of the closets, "She was definitely here..."

Harley tried not to smile knowing that this wasn't a victory but definitely a step in the right direction, "We're close then."

"Let's head back into the woods. See if we can pick up a more recent trail." He said.

As they left the house, Daryl called out for Sophia until something out of the corner of his eye catches his attention, "What is it?" Harley asked as he stopped in front of three white flowers in the grass.

"Cherokee Roses." Daryl mutters as he kneels down in front of them, "They bloom as a symbol of hope from the tears of the Cherokee mothers who lost their children to disease and starvation along the Trail of Tears." He explained as he picked the three flowers, "There's three of 'em." Harley gave him a confused look not fully understanding the significance of the number, "One fer the cop's kid, one fer Sophia..." Harley's eyebrows rose at the realization when he offered her the third flower, "Fer Anna."

The constricting of her throat made her feel silly as she accepted the flower from Daryl who blinked in surprise when he saw the tears welling up in her eyes, "I wasn't her mother." Harley murmured as she rotated the step of the flower between her thumb and pointer finger, examining it.

"Ya cared 'bout her." Daryl said, "As if she were yer own. Ya looked after her."

Harley was quick to rub her eyes of the unshed tears, "We should head back before it gets dark. We'll pick up the trail tomorrow." She looked at the remaining two flowers in Daryl's hands, "You should give one to Carol. I-I'm sure she'll appreciate it."

Daryl nodded and after a long while muttered, "I gotta find a vase fer it..."

Harley let out an airy laugh as her throat finally unconstricted and she stepped closer to Daryl, leaning up to give him a light peck on the cheek, "Yer a good man, Daryl Dixon."

* * *

><p>When they arrived back at the farm, Harley had taken the other flower and had given it to Lori, setting it on the nightstand in Carl's room. Lori had smiled at her and thanked her for it, but Harley had waved her off, "It was Daryl who found them." She had told the woman.<p>

A plate of food was offered to her by Dale when she went into the RV to gather her things and she accepted it, going outside to sit on the porch steps of the farmhouse to eat and enjoy the cool night air.

Daryl wasn't anywhere to be found and as she stared out into the open field, a ways away from the farmhouse, she sees the faint glow of a fire. She quickly shovels the rest of the food into her mouth and hands off her plate to a confused Glenn who happened to be passing by, "Can ya take care of that? Thanks!" She said before running off.

* * *

><p>"What're ya doin' way out here?" Harley asked Daryl who was sitting by the fire, charring up some squirrel he must've just caught.<p>

"Like my space." He told her and gave her a quick glance before he scooted a bit over on the log he was sitting on giving her enough room to sit. Harley gave him a small smile and sat down next to him, placing her bag of things on the ground near the tent he had set up, "If..." He began, looking unsure of himself, "If ya wanna stay out here with me..."

"Just us?" Harley asked.

For whatever reason Daryl took it to mean she didn't want to stay with him, "If ya don't wanna ya can just say so." He said a bit angrily.

Harley hooked her arm underneath his and rested her head on his shoulder, staring at the blazing fire, "I'd like to stay with you." She felt him relax and sigh a bit more contently. Picking her head up to look at him, she saw the faintest traces of a smile on his face and she felt the smallest of flutters deep within her.

They sat like that for a while, Harley letting go of Daryl when his meal had been cooked, allowing him to eat without her clinging to him. When he put out the fire, he tugged at her hand, "Let's go to bed."

And they went to bed although they didn't sleep. They laid on the makeshift bed, Harley staring at the ceiling of the tent with Daryl beside her, his head propped up with one hand while the other drew circles on her exposed hipbone, intently listening to her ramble on about her life before the outbreak.

"Y'know, I think my dad would've liked ya." She said suddenly after there was a long, drawn out silence and she caught his eyes. Daryl just snorted causing Harley to smile at him. The hand that was occupied with her hipbones came up to her face, stroking at the soft skin before brushing away some hairs that were stuck to her forehead.

"I..." Daryl began but cut himself off, not quite knowing what to say or how to say it.

Harley leaned up, her lips meeting his briefly before pulling away and snuggling up against him, "Goodnight, Daryl." She murmured into the fabric of his shirt.

"Goodnight, Harls."

* * *

><p>It was about an hour later and Daryl was still wide awake, sleep not coming to him as easily as it had Harley, although he knew that was because she had stayed up the night before when Hershel had been performing surgery on Carl.<p>

He held her close to him as he mentally tried to sort out the feelings he had for her. She was the only woman to ever get this close to him in both a physical and emotional sense. He was the town drunk's kid growing up and the brother of a junkie. Not many people freely associated with him other than his Uncle Jess who was the only person to ever show the youngest Dixon any sort of affection when he was younger.

Most of his life was spent in the woods, avoiding his father's drunken wrath. He rarely went to school and if he did he was quickly reminded by his schoolmates and teachers that he was a waste of human life and would never amount to anything. Dixons were fuck ups and there wasn't much he could change about that.

Harley didn't think that of him, though. When he looked in her eyes he never saw any disgust or hatred. She... she adored him. He could tell from the way her eyes shined when they looked at him or the small smiles that she gave him and no one else.

He didn't know how to react to this newfound female attention though. He'd never had a girlfriend before and the only intimate interactions he's had with women up until this point were the lap dances he got at the titty bar Merle used to drag him to.

And then his thoughts jumped to the word _girlfriend_; was it safe to say Harley was his girlfriend at this point? Or did he have to ask her to be his girlfriend? Did those social structures still apply even though society was now in shambles?

He could feel his head begin to whirl as the questions continued to build up and with a heavy sigh he relaxed into Harley who had turned in her sleep away from him. His arm was tightly around her waist and he stuffed his face into the crook of her neck, inhaling deeply her scent of the forest and the lingering smell of her citrus shampoo.

It was odd for him to think about these things and he felt dumb to be doing so. These situations had never plagued him before and when the world went to shit he thought to abandon all hope of ever finding a woman to settle down with, but here she was nestled in his arms.

"Go to sleep." He heard her mumble and her hand came over his hand that was resting on her stomach, "Gonna drive yerself crazy thinkin' so much." She told him tiredly, reiterating the words he had told her at the CDC knowing from the way he had been shifting around for the past hour that he was troubled by something.

Daryl didn't respond, but he did as she said and settled into her allowing for sleep to finally consume him.

* * *

><p><strong>Updates galore!<strong>

**This chapter is pretty Daryl/Harley centric. I gotta ask you guys, do you think I'm pacing Daryl and Harley's relationship right? I don't wanna go too fast with it and I also don't want it to be the most long, drawn out thing, so let me know what you think!**

**I am super duper excited about the next chapter and I already have half of it typed up. It'll be longer than the last two chapters and it's where I start to veer off from the original storyline so be prepared!**

**As always thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! Please review this chapter and let me know what you think! Critiques are always welcomed since I wanna grow and learn by writing this story and I wanna write something you guys wanna read, so let me know what you think and if I should change anything.**

**Stay tuned!**


	17. Sophia

By morning Harley was helping Rick prepare the search grid, "This zone was where the house was." Harley told him, marking it off on the map, "The best bet would be to use the house as the startin' point." She told Rick, "Start out with a 3 mile radius around the house, probl'y increase it by a mile each day until we find her." Harley said and then looked to the man for his approval of the plan.

Rick put a hand on her shoulder, "Ever think about goin' into law enforcement?" He asked a bit jokingly.

Harley just laughed, "Don't suppose it matters much now." She turned to the others who were standing away from Rick and Harley, preparing their packs for their trek into the woods, "Alright guys." She called out, gaining their attention, "I've divided the area into zones. We'll break off into pairs and each take a zo-"

She was cut off by one of the farm's residence coming bounding up to the group, Jimmy who was Hershel's other daughter, Beth's, boyfriend, "I can help y'all search if ya want. I know the area well and Hershel said it was okay."

Harley shot a look to Rick who in turn exchanged looks with Shane before Shane took a step forward, "Listen kid, you're gonna be pretty useless until ya get some proper training with a gun."

Andrea spoke up, "He can go with T-Dog and I."

"I'm gonna go to this ridge." Daryl said and pointed to the spot on the map, "Probl'y be able to spot her better from there."

"Maybe you'll see your chupacabra today." T-Dog jokes which earns a choked laugh from Jimmy and quizzical look from Harley.

"Somethin' funny, boy?" Daryl asked, bristling and the boy started to stutter out a response.

"Chupacabra?" Harley reiterated and Daryl shot her a look while Dale filled Rick in on when Daryl had claimed to seen a chupacabra.

"You believe in a bloodsucking dog?" Rick asked.

Daryl was quick to shoot back, "You believe in dead people walking around?"

Mumbling something along the lines of, "And on that happy note...", Harley started to assign zones to each of the groups, claiming she would be going out on her own to search around the abandoned house once more which brought objections from Rick and Shane who didn't see fit to let a woman wander into the woods by herself.

Daryl just snorted when they looked to him for some sort of back up, "She the only other person capable of tracking, ain't worried about letting her off alone."

And that was the end of that conversation.

* * *

><p>Harley's search proved fruitless when she discovered the trail that she and Daryl had picked up on the previous day had gone cold. Regardless, she continued to search around the area, calling out for Sophia softly for hours.<p>

It was late in the afternoon before she finally decided to head back to camp, knowing the others would be doing the same. The heavy weight of disappointment fell onto her as she trudged back through the woods, getting heavier and heavier with each step.

"Any leads?" Dale had asked when she arrived back at the farm, but knowing what the answer was from her crestfallen face.

"Nothing." She grumbled, "Trail we had picked up yesterday just goes cold."

Dale gives her a soft pat on the back, "Don't be so hard on yourself." He reminds her.

* * *

><p>Daryl was still not back and Harley tried not to let the worry gnaw at her but something felt off. She busied herself with helping the women in the kitchen, something she normally would have avoided, but she didn't want to sit around useless until Daryl came back.<p>

"So, where did you stay last night, Harley?" Lori asked while she peeled carrots.

Harley could already see what she was getting at, "Out in the tent with Daryl." She responded coolly.

Patricia laughed at the girl's demeanor, "And what are his intentions?"

With a wide-eyed look, Harley stopped chopping potatoes, "Intentions?"

The other women got sly looks on their faces and Harley was suddenly thinking that it would've been best to sit in her tent and twiddle her thumbs.

* * *

><p>It was the sound of a gunshot that caused the women in the kitchen to cease what they were doing. Harley was the first to bolt out of the house, seeing Rick and Shane carrying someone in the distance with Glenn and Andrea trailing behind, Andrea looking distressed.<p>

When they got close enough, Harley saw it was Daryl who they were carrying and immediately her heart dropped, "What happened?!" She demanded.

Neither Rick nor Shane said anything to her as they carried Daryl into the house, Rick calling for Hershel. Andrea was the one to speak, "I-I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean..."

Harley's eyes widened with realization, "You... you shot him?!" She shouted. Glenn's hand found Harley's arm trying to pull her into the house but she ripped her arm away from him, "You fucking shot him?! Are you kidding me?!"

"I-I thought he was a walker. I-I didn't kn-know." Andrea stammered.

Glenn didn't even have a chance to grab Harley before she reeled back and sent a punch straight into Andrea's nose, hearing a satisfying crack when it made contact.

"Harley!" Glenn shouted and he lunged towards her, trying to restrain the young woman as she spouted curses at Andrea who could do nothing but hold her bleeding nose while tears leaked from her eyes.

"This is why you don't deserve to have a gun!" Harley told her, "You don't _think_!" She inhaled deeply, allowing Glenn to take hold of her and guide her into the house but not before she left Andrea with some parting words, "You better hope to God he's okay."

* * *

><p>Harley marched into the room where Hershel was tending to Daryl, breathing a sigh of relief that Daryl was now conscious answering questions Rick was throwing at him. Harley catches Daryl's eye and he could see from the puffiness of her eyes and the way her eyebrows were crinkled she was trying hard not to cry although from the scowl on her face he wasn't sure if it was tears from anger or from sadness.<p>

When he saw Andrea being ushered through the halls of the farmhouse by Patricia, holding her gushing nose, he assumed it was from anger.

It wasn't until everyone had left the room that Harley settled down onto the edge of the bed next to him, brushing away some dirt on his face and it was a long silence that took over after that.

"Don't..." Harley sucked in her breath, "Don't ya ever do that to me ever again." Daryl didn't quite know what to say as he stared at the young woman who was near tears, "I don't think I could handle losing you." She said softly, her finger drawing circles on his arm as she kept her eyes from his.

He pulled her to him, ignoring the fits of pain that erupted when he did so and she sank into him, trying to be careful of his wounds, "Ain't goin' nowhere." He finally said as he played with the stray pieces of hair that had fallen from her ponytail. They sat in silence for a very long time. Harley listening to the beating of his heart and Daryl twisting strands of her hair. Daryl was the first to speak, "I ain't good with this whole thing." He admitted.

Harley glanced up at him, confused.

"Relationships." He said, the word foreign to his tongue, "I ain't never..." He trailed off, "I like ya." He confessed, "And I ain't never been good with women so I don't know what the hell I'm supposed ta do. Don't know if I should call ya my girlfriend or what."

Harley stared at him for a long while making him second guess everything he had said, but then suddenly she broke out into a fit of giggles trying to calm herself down long enough to ask, "Are... are ya askin' me to be your girlfriend?" She didn't give him a chance to answer as she continued, "'cause the answer would be yes."

* * *

><p>When Carol brings up two plates of food for Daryl and Harley, she sees Harley sleeping on the battered redneck while he plays with her hair, "Brought food for the both of ya." Carol announces as she sets down the plates on the nightstand at Daryl's request. She waits a moment, "I want to thank you for all you've done; looking for Sophia." She said, "You did more for my little girl today than her own daddy ever did for her his whole life."<p>

Daryl shrugs the comment off, "Didn't do anything Rick or Shane wouldn't have done."

"I know," Carol said, "You're every bit as good as them." With that she walks out leaving Daryl with an uncomfortably warm feeling in his gut.

* * *

><p>Stalking through the Georgia woods, Harley had her hunting knife securely in one hand and a flashlight in the other. The sun had began to set about a half an hour ago and now the woods were almost shrouded in shadow, looking to be something straight out of a horror film. She had been searching all day and she knew that Daryl would be upset with her if she did not return to the farm soon, it never being a good idea to be lurking in the woods at night by yourself.<p>

In the distance, just barely through all the darkness, she began to make out a small opening made up of tree roots and earth at the base of a tiny hill in front of a tree. The overhanging branches and vines would have made it nearly impossible to notice, especially in the dark, but Harley's eyes had been trained from a young age to spot every little detail in the woods.

As she approached it, she forcefully squashed any sort of hope that began to bubble to the surface, knowing that it could be just another dead end and she reminded herself constantly of that whenever she or Daryl thought they were getting close to finding Sophia.

She was a fair distance away from the opening before she stopped in her tracks, bringing her knife up as a defensive measure, "Sophia?" She called out softly, probably not as loud as she should have.

A ragged breathing echoed around her and slowly, a hand emerged from the hole and then another as a mangled face dragged itself out. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she approached the walker who seemed to have somehow lost its legs. She knelt down in front of it as it helplessly tried to drag itself towards her, reaching out, it's teeth clamping down as it tried to bite at her.

After a moment of staring at it, a dull look on her face, Harley drove her blade into its skull and wrenched it out. She felt the sting of defeat prod at her as she resigned herself to head back to camp after another unsuccessful search effort.

As she turned to head in the opposite direction, she felt something hard beneath her foot as she took her first step. Glancing down curiously, she brushed away some leaves and twigs that were covering the metal object and picked it up, inspecting it.

A crushed empty can of food.

"H-harley?" Came a small voice from above her. Harley sucked in sharply as she looked up at the tree in front of her, "I'm stuck." The little girl said as she clung to the trunk of the tree where she was sitting at least ten or twelve feet up.

Tears stung at her eyes as Harley smiled up at the girl who appeared a bit gaunt if anything else, but relatively unharmed, "You're okay..."

The trek back to the farm felt like it took forever and Harley had to stop herself from pinching her arm, still not believing the little girl whose arms clung around her neck was real.

Sophia had fallen asleep on Harley's back about halfway back to the farm which left Harley with her own thoughts. No one gave the little girl enough credit. It's been nearly a week since she went missing and she had managed to survive out in the woods all by herself, no easy feat for anyone, much less a twelve year old girl.

She had stayed close to the stream, telling Harley that she knew if she stayed close then they might find her sooner. She moved from place to place throughout her time she spent in the woods and had ended up in that small opening in the ground the night before. She had woken up at some point in the night and heard walkers stumbling about around her and bolted up the tree until they all were gone, only she didn't know how to get down and managed to get herself stuck.

Harley smiled to herself, glad that for once, life didn't deal their group a cruel hand.

* * *

><p>Dale stood on top of the RV with a pair of binoculars firmly placed over his eyes and looking in the direction he expected Harley to emerge from the woods. The sun had almost completely set and if Harley was not back by now, it meant she would be left in the woods by herself for the night. It also meant delivering bad news to the bedridden redneck which no one wanted to do at this point.<p>

Just as the sun finally hid away behind the mountains in the distance, Dale saw a figure stumble out of the forest with something secured on its back.

"Is that Harley?" Glenn asked the older man from his place on the ground

"What's on her back?" Dale muttered to himself, not answering the boy's question, "Get Rick." He ordered.

* * *

><p>Harley was exhausted by the time she emerged from the tree line and a small thought crossed her mind hoping that no one would try to shoot at her thinking she was a walker.<p>

Although, the thought was a bit on the bitter side as she still held some resentment towards Andrea for shooting Daryl.

She could see Dale on top of the RV and waved at him and then saw Rick come bounding towards her with Shane at his heels, "I think you should get Carol." She told them as they came to a stop in front of her and leaned her head a bit to the side, revealing the sleeping face of Sophia, "...I-I found her..."

The pair stared at her with disbelief; Rick's hand was over his mouth while Shane ran his hand over his head. Rick nodded to Shane who ran off without another word, screaming for Carol.

"I can't believe it..." Rick mumbled.

Harley adjusted her grip on the girl, "I still don't believe she's real." She admitted.

Rick stared at Harley for a moment before a grin broke out on his face, "You did good, Harley... you did real good."

A small smile appeared on her face and she looked behind him where she saw Carol barreling towards them.

"Sophia." Harley jostled the girl a bit, "C'mon, wake up." Sophia groggily opened her eyes and Harley put her down, steadying her as she swayed on her feet a bit, "I think ya wanna be awake for this."

"Sophia!" Carol cried out as she saw the tiny figure beside Harley and Rick.

Alls it took was the sound of her mother's voice to wake Sophia up instantly, "Momma!" She shouted and started to run to Carol whose face was crumpled as she cried.

Rick and Harley watched silently from the sidelines as mother and daughter embraced, reunited and at peace. Rick's hand was on Harley's shoulder, giving her a light pat as he heard Harley sniffle a bit, "Yeah, this was definitely worth it."

Rick smiled and brought the girl closer to him in a slightly awkward, but comforting nonetheless, hug. When Carol parted from her daughter, still a strong grip on the little girl's hand, she rushed over to Harley, "Thank you." Were the only words she could utter as the tears streaked down her face, "Thank you so much." She pulled the young woman into a hug.

Harley smiled at the woman as she pulled away, "Don't think anythin' of it." She muttered.

By this time, the rest of the group had begun to gather, staring at the little girl in astonishment. Sophia looked to be in a whirlwind as they all began to greet her and she was soon whisked away to the farmhouse to be fed a large meal.

Harley had realized she had not been to see Daryl yet who was holed up in his tent away from the farmhouse trying to recuperate after his near death experience yesterday. When she enters the tent she sees Daryl reading a book, a bit of an odd sight if she'd ever seen one.

He looks up when she enters, "Find anything?" He asks.

Harley gives him a smile, "Yeah."

* * *

><p><strong>Aaaaaaaaaaand now the story gets interesting.<strong>


	18. Ain't How They Used To Be

As with most things nowadays, when there is good news, bad news was sure to follow. That came the morning after Harley had found Sophia. Everyone was at the camp outside the farmhouse, eating breakfast. Harley had even managed to urge Daryl out of his tent to join her with the rest of their group. Sophia and Carl were sitting next to each other, excitedly chattering to themselves but Sophia never strayed too far from Carol who kept a watchful eye on her daughter.

There was an air of peace among everyone. A feeling many had long forgotten and it was completely shattered by one simple sentence.

"The barn is full of walkers."

The entire camp grew silent, everyone sending Glenn looks of scrutiny and disbelief.

"What?" Harley didn't so much ask as she demanded.

* * *

><p>Shane approached the barn, peering into it through a small opening in the door. He jumped back as a walker growled at him from within and his attention diverted to Rick, "You cannot tell me you're okay with this?!"<p>

"No, I'm not," Rick reasoned, "But we're guests here. This isn't our land."

Shane was furious, "This is our lives!"

Glenn tried to quiet them, "Lower your voice."

"We can't just sweep this under the rug!" Andrea told them.

Shane tried to talk some sense into Rick, "It ain't right. Not even remotely." He told him as he walked up next to him, "We either got to go in there and make things right or we have just got to go. Now, we have been talking about Fort Benning for a long time..."

"We can't go." Rick grounded out.

"Why, Rick?" Shane asked truly frustrated with Rick at this point.

"We don't have the resources to make it that far." Rick said, "There's too many of us and not enough food. We don't even have enough fuel to make it halfway."

"Shane, you need to be reasonable." Harley told him, "We cannot leave."

"And why the hell not?!" He shouted, stepping up to her.

Harley felt her anger flare up at him getting in her face, but tried to keep herself in check, "It's gettin' colder. So, we make it to Fort Benning, what if there is _nothing left_?! Then, what?" Harley looked past Shane to Rick and then back to Shane when she saw Rick was not going to step in, "We can't spend the winter on the road. It's dangerous and we have children to think about."

Shane took a deep breath in and leaned in closer to Harley who did not back away, "The children?" He asked, "Like that little girl you let die back at the quarry?" His tone was full of malice.

Every single shred of control she had disappeared and she felt her insides bubble with rage, "Everyone is sick of this little fuckin' Alpha war yer havin' with Rick." She said, "Yer just mad because she chose him over you." That was all she had to say to get Shane to take a swing at her.

Daryl was on him like white on rice, "Don't you ever fuckin' touch her ever again!" Daryl shouted as he tried to lunge at Shane only to be held back by Rick who made an attempt to keep the two apart.

Carol was the one to help Harley off the floor, where she had ended up when Shane's fist collided with her cheek, "Are you okay?" She asked Harley who had just laughed it off muttering something about Shane being able to deal it but not take it.

"Let me talk to Hershel!" Rick shouted, "Let me figure it out!"

"What're you gonna figure out?!" Shane yelled.

"If we're gonna stay; if we're gonna clear this barn I have to talk him into it." Rick said, "This is his land."

Daryl was at Harley's side, huffing and puffing as he took hold of her chin jerking her head around to take a look at where Shane had hit her but she shrugged him off, "'m fine." She mumbled and with that she walked away, putting her faith in Rick to make the right decision for the group.

* * *

><p>Maggie was tending to Harley's swollen cheekbone as per Harley's request, "I can't believe he hit you."<p>

Harley gave a shrug, "I was kinda hopin' for it." She admitted, "I had an older brother." Harley told her, "This is nothin' compared to some of the injuries I got 'cause of him." Maggie stayed silent as she iced Harley's already bruising cheek, "He broke my arm once." Harley mused, "Pushed me down the stairs 'cause he thought it'd be fun."

As she tried not to laugh, Maggie mumbled a 'that's awful'.

Harley laughed, "It wasn't so bad." She said, "Once my arm had healed up, my dad let me go after Dylan with a bat. I had a pretty mean swing for an eight year old."

Maggie's laughter filled the room but it was cut off quickly as an unsure look dawned on her face, "You... You're not upset with my dad, right?"

With a shrug Harley said, "He's doin' what he thinks is right. Can't blame him for that even if I don't agree with it."

Maggie pulled away the icepack from Harley's swollen face, "Thank you." She said quietly before perking up, "I better go start collectin' the eggs." She announced as if she had forgotten about the task up until now. Harley grabbed the icepack that was offered to her and followed Maggie out of the house, waving to the other girl as they parted ways, "Don't go gettin' punched in the face anymore, alright?" Maggie called out.

"I'll try not to."

* * *

><p>It was nearing midday when little Sophia stumbled into Harley's and Daryl's campsite with a plate of food. She almost looked unsure of herself as she approached the tent and peered through the open flap, "Harley?" She called out.<p>

Within seconds, Harley's bruised face popped out of the opening of the tent, a smile on her face at the presence of Sophia, "Hey there, kiddo." She took notice of the plate of food in her hands, "That for me?"

Sophia nodded eagerly and handed Harley the plate, "Momma thought you'd be hungry."

Patting a spot on the makeshift bed next to her, Harley gestured for Sophia to take a seat as she stood awkwardly in the entrance of the tent, "C'mere." She said as the little girl sat down next to her, "How are you doin'?"

The little girl fiddled with her fingers, "I'm okay." She mumbled.

Harley gave the girl a peculiar glance before smiling at the girl, a bit sadly, "Things don't feel the same, do they?" Sophia nodded at her question and Harley set her food down to bring Sophia into her side, resting her arm across the girl's tiny shoulders, "There's a lot of decisions to be made and people aren't always goin' to agree on what's best for the group." She told the little girl.

Sophia pursed her lips, "Is that why Shane hit you? 'cause you didn't agree with him?" There was a dark look in the little girl's eyes as she spat out the name Shane and it didn't take too long for Harley to realize Sophia was comparing Shane to her own abusive father.

Harley shook her head, "I said somethin' to him that I shouldn't have. I was lookin' for a fight."

"He shouldn't have hit you."

Trying to lighten the mood, Harley rustled Sophia's hair and laughed, "Hey, I'm tougher than I look!" She began to flex her biceps, "See, look at my massive muscles!" Sophia broke out into giggles at the woman's antics and Harley smiled at her, "I know it might seem a bit useless to say this to ya, but just try not to worry about what's goin' on so much. We'll all figure it out, even if it takes us a while."

Sophia nodded her head, "Alright." She conceded.

* * *

><p>Not too long after Sophia left did Daryl show up to find Harley finishing off her plate from lunch. When he looked at her swollen cheek, he felt anger swell in him. He took a seat next to her after he strung up some squirrels he had just caught.<p>

Harley didn't try to protest when Daryl took hold of her chin as he did earlier that day and inspected the purpled skin on her cheekbone, "Prob'ly looks worse than it is." Harley said to him.

Exhaling through his nose, he released his grip on her chin, "Shouldn't've let that happen to ya."

Harley quirked an eyebrow, "Don't go blamin' yourself for me shootin' off my mouth. I can take care of myself." She told him, "Don't need ya to do it for me."

She wasn't looking for anyone to try and protect her. She didn't expect anyone to lay down their life for her. She knew her shortcomings and that had she retaliated against Shane after he hit her, he probably would've came out on top if there was no intervention because she wasn't nearly as strong as him, but she wasn't going to back down because of that.

Daryl snorted, "Just 'cause ya can take care of yourself doesn't mean I'm not gonna look out for ya." He grabbed her hand, running his thumb along the top of it, "Can't let anythin' happen to ya."

Harley smiled softly at the man and tightened her hold on his hand.

* * *

><p>Most of the residents of the farm and the survivors were gathered at the farmhouse.<p>

Harley had sent Glenn a wink when she caught him and Maggie holding hands and he tried to conceal the smile that itched at his face. Patricia and Beth were teaching Carl and Sophia how to play checkers on the porch. They were in the middle of their fifth game and Carl was beginning to think that it wasn't Sophia's first time playing checkers as she'd beaten him in the four previous matches.

"Are you sure this is you first time playing?" He grumbled as she captured another one of his pieces.

She giggled and nodded before making her next move.

Harley and Carol were seated on one of the benches, chatting quietly to themselves with Daryl not too far away barely paying attention to the conversation the two women were having.

"Anyone know what's goin' on?" T-Dog asked as he and Andrea approached the farmhouse.

"Where is everyone?" Andrea chimed in.

Glenn who had gotten up to go get his hat for Maggie to wash looked confused, "You haven't seen Rick?"

"He went off with Hershel." Andrea explained, "We were supposed to go on a supply run a couple of hours ago."

"Here we go." Daryl mumbled as they saw Shane approach with the bag of guns that Dale was supposed to keep locked up in the RV, "What's all this?" Daryl asked.

"You with me, man?" Shane asked as he offered Daryl a gun.

Daryl glanced over at Harley before taking the gun, "Yeah."

"Time to grow up." Shane announced, "You already got yours?" He asked Andrea.

Andrea's eyebrows furrowed as she trailed after Shane, "Yeah." She told him, "Where's Dale?"

"He's on his way." Shane said as he handed T-Dog a gun and then Harley who left the shade of the porch to stand next to Daryl.

"Thought we couldn't carry." Said T-Dog as he accepted the gun albeit a little cautiously.

"We can and we have to. Look it was one thing sitting around here picking daises when we thought this place was supposed to be safe, but now we know that it ain't." He turned to Glenn who had Maggie standing besides him looking angry, "How 'bout you, man? You gonna protect yours?" He offered Glenn a gun which he took without looking at Maggie, "Can you shoot?" Shane asked Maggie.

She was livid, "Can you stop? You do this, you hand out these guns, my dad will make you leave _tonight_."

"This ain't right." Harley mumbled as she stared at her own gun strangely.

"We have to stay, Shane." Carl said from the porch as his mother came from the house.

"What is this?!" She demanded.

"Now look, Hershel, he's just gotta understand." Shane muttered, "Now, well.. he's - he's just gonna have to." He walked to Carl and kneeled down in front of him, "Now, I want you to take this. Take this and keep your mother safe, you know how to." He told the little boy as he held out a gun for him to take.

Lori was quick to step in between the two, "Rick said no guns. This is not your call. This is not your decision to make."

"Oh shit." T-Dog's statement made everyone turn to look.

"Oh shit indeed." Harley said as she watched Jimmy, Hershel, and Rick emerge from the woods with two walkers at the ends of snare poles being led to the barn.

It was unsurprisingly Shane who was the first to react, "What is that?" He growled as he started running towards the three who were wrangling walkers.

"Shane!" Lori yelled as they all ran after him.

"What the hell are you doin'?!" Shane shouted.

Rick struggled as he tried to keep control of the walker, "Shane, just back off!"

"Why do your people have guns?" Hershel asked.

Despite the internal conflicts that most of them were going through, the survivors had their guns out and ready as Shane walked around the scene, "You see what they're holdin' onto?"

"I see _who_ I'm holding onto." Hershel retaliated.

"No, man, you don't."

Rick was growing angry with Shane's interference, "Shane, just let us do this and then we can talk."

"What you want to talk about, Rick?!" Shane yelled, "These things ain't sick! They're not people! They're dead! Ain't gonna feel nothing for them 'cause all they do, they kill! These things, right here! They're the things that killed Amy!" He looked pointedly at Andrea who stiffened and then his gaze shifted to Harley, "And that little girl of yours!" Harley pursed her lips, "They killed Otis! They're gonna kill all of us!"

"Shane, shut up!" Rick ordered.

Shane took a deep breath in and lowered his voice, "Hey, Hershel, man, lemme ask you somethin'." He pulled his gun from his waistband, "Could a livin', breathin' person, could they walk away from this?" He took aim and shot the walker Hershel had hold of in the chest three times.

"Stop it!" Rick yelled but Shane ignored him.

"That's three rounds to the chest. Could someone that's alive, could they just take that?! Why is it still coming?!" He took two more shots, "That's its heart, its lungs! Why is it still comin'?!" More gunshots.

Rick shouted, "Shane, enough!"

"Yeah, you're right, man. That is enough." He approached the walker and without hesitation shot it in the head, sending it crumpling to the floor, "Enough living next to a barn full of things trying to kill us! Enough! It ain't like it was before, Rick! Now, if you all want to live, if you want to survive, you gotta fight for it! I'm talkin' about fightin', right here, right now!"

He barreled over to the barn and took hold of a pick axe as Rick urged Hershel to take the snare pole that was attached to the remaining walker, but Hershel just stayed kneeling on the ground in shock.

Those who did have guns had them out and aimed towards the barn as Shane broke the lock with Rick begging him not to. Harley glanced to her right where Carol and Sophia stood and called to them, "Get behind us."

Carol nodded her head and pulled a crying Sophia along to stand near Lori and Carl. Andrea and T-Dog were the first to run beside Shane and start firing at the walkers as they emerged from the barn. Daryl was the next followed by Harley who opened fire despite the horrible feeling in her chest.

One by one the walkers fell until there were bodies riddling the ground in front of the barn and a stillness took over the group as they all looked at each other while the Greene family cried and mourned their losses.

And just like that it was over.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! So, this chapter was pretty long, lots of dialogue! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! I really can't even express how awesome it is that you guys like this story so much :)<strong>

**Now time to answer a few reviews since I've been neglecting to do that, ahaha ^_^;**

_MaoIsSleepy:_**Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it!**

_ChasingWolves:_** Maybe! ;) I definitely won't be sticking to the TV series in terms of who dies and who lives, so there's always that chance!**

_mrskaz453:_**Hahahaha, I totally agree, although, Harley did get knocked for a loop in this chapter. Now, that Sophia has been found, I don't think Carol will have that much of an interest in Daryl, although, you never know!**

_I-am-Sherlocked-82:_** Thank you! Stay tuned to find out ;)**

_VampWolf92:_** Ah, sorry? I guess the last chapter didn't impress you much then?**

_NanamiYatsumaki:_**I know, right? I never thought that was realistic. They just didn't give her enough credit and thank you!**

_saraah97:_ **Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the changes I'm making :)**

_ReidsGirl:_ **Thank you! That means a lot :') **


	19. Weight

It was rather obvious to everyone that Shane was going off the deep end. Between his rampage at the barn and him hitting Harley earlier that day, it seemed as though Shane Walsh was not the same man he was before the outbreak. It was because of him and his actions that Hershel wanted the group off of his land.

The Greene family was devastated with their loss and Beth all of sixteen years old wasn't able to cope; being attacked by her own mother didn't help the situation either.

Harley sat with Daryl at their camp site, drawing circles in the dirt with a twig. Every now and then the twig would snap from the pressure and she'd replace it with another. There was a heavy feeling that wouldn't lift from the bottom of her gut and she knew that what they had done was wrong despite how hazardous the situation may have seemed.

Even though they were broken and had seen so much sadness and death, the Greene family hadn't. Hershel's belief that the walkers could be cured had remained strong so long after the outbreak despite hearing nothing from the outside world for months. Shane had ruined that for them. They all had.

"We bring so much devastation wherever we go." Harley murmured as she drew a squiggle in the dirt, "We broke that family."

Daryl looked over at her, "_We _didn't do nothin'. S'that asshole Shane's fault."

She shook her head, "Wasn't just him doin' the shootin'. Me and you — we did too." Daryl bit back whatever reply he may have had and stood up to walk over to her. He plopped down on the log next to her and threw his arm around her. She relaxed under the weight of his arm and let her head fall onto his shoulder, "I wonder how much a person can take before they just ... _quit_."

* * *

><p>The service for the Greene family members was a quiet one. They only buried Annette and Shawn, Hershel's wife and step-son; the rest would be burned.<p>

Harley helped gather the other bodies to take them out to the field to be burned. Dale was once again trying to make a case, but everyone shrugged him off and as Lori had told him, "It's too late, it's already done."

With the intense need to busy herself, Harley relinquished any resentment she had for household chores and took to the kitchen, washing dishes with Beth who remained quiet for the most part. She could faintly hear Maggie and Glenn talking in the living room and she knew that Glenn was going to have a tough time deciding where he truly belonged although Harley had a feeling he would figure out it was with the farmer's daughter.

Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Beth swaying a bit, "Beth, you all right?" She asked and no sooner had the words left her mouth did Beth crash to the floor in a heap, the dishes that she had been washing clattering in the sink.

"Beth!" She heard Maggie shout and Harley fell to the floor at Beth's side as Maggie and Glenn rushed to them.

"Beth?!" Harley called and felt the girl's forehead finding her to be burning up and unresponsive, "Help me get her upstairs." Harley said and Maggie nodded hurriedly heaving Beth up from the ground and with a combined effort got her up the stairs and onto her bed.

"What's wrong with her?" Maggie asked.

While assessing the young blonde, Harley told Maggie. "She's in shock."

Lori's head popped into the doorway of the room, "Where's Hershel?"

Maggie looked distraught as Glenn answered for her, "We can't find him anywhere."

* * *

><p>Maggie and Glenn went into Hershel's room with Rick, Lori, and Shane as they looked around for any indicator of where Hershel might have gone while Harley stayed in the room with Beth trying to coax her out of her state.<p>

"Beth," She whispered to the girl as she held her hand, "Beth, it's gonna be all right." Out in the hallway she could hear Lori, Rick, and Shane arguing about Rick going to find Hershel and she heard Shane stomp away leaving just Rick and Lori.

"We need him. Not just for the group, but for the baby." Rick said, "I'm going after him."

Harley let Beth's hand drop from her own and she leaned back a little on the bed to peer out the doorway as Rick walked by. Lori happened to catch her gaze and froze in her spot, staring wide-eyed at the younger woman.

There was a long silence between the two before Harley said, "Ain't gotta worry about me sayin' anythin'."

Lori seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and she leaned against the doorframe, "Thank you." She finally said after another quiet filled the room.

"Know how far along ya are?" Harley asked.

Lori shook her head, "Can't be too far." She told her. "Maybe a month or two."

Harley pursed her lips and she looked back at Beth, "Well then, we're gonna have to find a way to persuade Hershel to let us stay." She glanced back up at Lori. "Bein' on the road in the winter ain't gonna do any of us no good, 'specially you."

Lori's eyes were downcast, "I know." She said under her breath.

"It's gonna be all right." Harley reassured as she had been doing with Beth, however, the heavy feeling remained and she wasn't sure what this news meant to the future of their group.

* * *

><p>Patricia was tending to Beth, though there wasn't much that anyone could do for her. Maggie and Jimmy were by her side and Harley didn't stray too far from the room. Andrea had come to the farmhouse to assess the situation herself and when she found Harley standing in the room she almost turned to walk out, but the young woman stopped her.<p>

"Can I talk to you for a second?" Harley asked. Andrea seemed hesitant as she nodded and let Harley lead her into Maggie's room which was vacant of any unwanted people. "I wanted to apologize to you for ..." She glanced quickly at Andrea's still bruised nose, "Wasn't right that I did that and I wanted to apologize sooner, but all this happened and I haven't had the chance..."

Andrea held her hand up before Harley could ramble herself into a hole, "It's all right." Andrea told her. "I ... I probably would've reacted the same way. My nose certainly isn't thanking you for it, but you could say you knocked a bit of sense into me." Harley grimaced a bit at the implication. "It's a good thing..." Andrea reassured her, "I was too worried about proving my worth and look what happened... I could have killed someone."

Harley held her hand out for Andrea, "Then, I suppose there's no need for us to avoid each other like the plague anymore?"

Andrea laughed and grasped her hand, "No need." She agreed.

A little bit of the weight seemed to be alleviated from the pit of her stomach.

* * *

><p>Harley had passed by Lori on the way to find Daryl and she seemed as though she was in a hurry. Harley was about to turn to ask her what her rush was, but she thought better of it and continued on, spotting Daryl whittling away in the distance. He didn't give her a second glance as she sat down next to him. He kept on carving furiously at the stick in his hand, trying to sharpen the point.<p>

"Somethin' botherin' ya?" Harley asked not being particularly fond of the uncomfortable silence that filled the air around them.

He scoffed, "Ain't nothin' fer ya to worry 'bout." He told her. Harley looked over at him like she didn't believe him, but didn't question him any further knowing that it was better not to pry when he was in such a volatile mood.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! So, this is an extremely short chapter. I'm on a 4 hour break from class and figured I would try to type up something quick for you guys since I haven't updated in so long which I'm super sorry about. I started school about a month ago and between adjusting to a new school and the enormous work load that I have, I haven't had much of a chance to write for this story, although I have been writing something else on the side :D<strong>

**Would any of you be interested in reading another TWD fanfiction from me? It would most likely be Rick/OC since I can't really see myself writing anyone else for Daryl other than Harley ^_^; I have about 25 pages of it written up and if a few of you say you wanna read it, I'll post the first chapter to see how you like it!**

**As always, thank you for all the reviews, favorites, and for adding this story to your story alerts! You guys are the best! 3**

**And, if any of you have a Tumblr, follow me! My URL is **_bbyjesus_


	20. Relieve Some Tension

It was nearing supper time and Harley had taken to helping Carol and Patricia prepare a meal that almost reminded her of home with biscuits and gravy. Harley was busy setting the table by the time everyone began to gather around it, Andrea making a comment about Rick and Glenn not being back with Hershel yet. Shane shrugged it off and insisted that they probably just got holed up somewhere.

"We'll —we'll head out first thing in the morning." He thanked Harley as she handed him his plate and she simply gave him a blank stare and a low hum. Carl, who was seated next to Sophia, seemed to be down in the dumps and Shane tried to give him a pep talk, telling him to keep his head up and was scolded by Patricia when he almost swore.

"No cussin' in the house." She said firmly and Harley almost wanted to laugh as a look of reproach appeared on Shane's face and he apologized.

"Lori, dinner!" Carol called out only to be told that Lori wasn't in there by Maggie.

"Where is she?" Dale asked and Maggie's eyes seemed to go doe-like at the question she did not have an answer to.

Shane looked at Carl and asked. "Carl, when was the last time you seen your mom?"

"This afternoon." He said unsure of what was exactly happening and he looked at Sophia for some kind of guidance, but the little girl looked just as confused as everyone else.

Andrea spoke up, "She was worried about Rick. Asked me to look in on Carl." Dale quickly asked, "She went after them?" Andrea shook her head. "She didn't say that."

"Nobody panic. Gonna be around here somewhere." Shane said as he threw his napkin on the table and everyone got up in a hurry to look for the missing woman.

Harley followed after them and piped in, "Might want to ask Daryl. I saw her on my way to our camp. She was headin' in the opposite direction and looked like she was in a hurry."

"You and Carol go ask him if he knows where she went while we look around and see if she's still around here." Shane ordered.

At any other point, Harley would have felt a surge of irritation at his authoritative tone, but knowing that something could have happened to Lori made her suppress whatever resentment and anger she held for the man and she dipped her head in a nod and headed off to their campsite with Sophia trailing behind, the little girl not quite knowing where she should go at a time like this.

"Daryl!" Harley called out when they approached the campsite where Daryl was stoking a fire. "We've been looking for Lori and the others aren't back yet either."

Daryl looked at Harley with a blank stare. "Yeah." He said obviously annoyed. "That dumb bitch must've gone off lookin' for 'em." Harley sent the man a warning gaze which he promptly ignored and she had a feeling whatever Lori had said to him must've really set him off.

"What?" Carol asked.

"Yeah, she asked me to go." Daryl said. "Told her I was done being an errand boy."

Harley and Carol looked at the man with disbelief while Sophia was clinging to her mother's side clearly a bit afraid of the redneck which no one could blame her for; Daryl could be quite intimidating to anyone who wasn't used to him.

"And you didn't say anything?" Carol questioned and when she didn't receive an answer she took Sophia's hand and began to stalk off, only stopping to send a glance to Harley over her shoulder, but Harley just waved her off. "Go tell Shane. I'll be up at the farmhouse in a little while."

When her and Sophia were a far enough distance away, Harley sat down on the log next to Daryl with a measurable distance between them almost as if she were letting him know she was displeased with him.

"What?!" He finally demanded when she didn't say anything.

Pursing her lips, she resisted the urge to give him a good slap upside the head just like her father used to do to her when she was being insufferable. "The hell is your problem?" She asked.

If he was a cat, his fur would've bristled at the the question. "My problem?!" He yelled. "I ain't no one's messenger boy! I ain't obliged ta do nothin'! That bitch wanted her husband found? She can do it her fuckin' self!" His voice grew low as he mumbled, "Heaven knows she ain't doin' nothin' else 'round here..."

Harley placed her hand on his arm and frowned when he shrugged her off. "Daryl if somethin's wrong ya gotta talk to me."

Daryl scoffed. "Ain't nothin' fuckin' wrong." But he continued to speak and it was evident that there was something eating away at him. "These fuckin' people have treated me like the scum beneath their feet ever since they met me. Nevermind the fact that I provided food for their kids and protection when they needed it even though I didn't have to. I didn't have to risk my life lookin' for that little girl and I sure as hell don't gotta risk it lookin' for Rick. He's a grown ass man who can look out for himself." His nostrils flared and Harley realized why he was so angry and even though she knew he'd try to shrug her off again, she slid her arm under his and curled up next to him holding his arm tightly when he tried to pull it from her.

"You think they only keep you around 'cause you're useful to them; that they don't give a damn about you other than if you can go huntin' or track someone down." Harley murmured and when Daryl let out a huff she figured she was right in her assumption. "Daryl, they _care_ about you." She told him. "You act like you don't wanna be around anyone so they leave you alone and you can't blame anyone but yourself for that."

"What the hell do you know?" He spat and attempted to rip his arm away from her once more, but her grip on it didn't relinquish.

"I ain't always gonna say things you wanna hear and I want you to know that it's 'cause_ I _care about you." She said. "I don't want you to continue down this path of self destruction 'cause what're you gonna do if somethin' happens to me, huh? You make enemies with everyone else in the group and you won't have anyone."

Before she could say anything else, he cut her off. "Ain't nothin' gonna happen to you." He insisted and she just let out an airy laugh.

"Daryl, ya can't guarantee that." He let out a grunt and she just held onto his arm, her face coming to rest on his shoulder and she could feel him finally ease up. "If you wanna be apart of this group you gotta act like you do. Ain't sayin' you gotta get along with everyone, Lord knows I don't, but ya gotta try." He seemed to deflate a little and Harley took it as a sign of resignation. She hummed and pressed a kiss to his exposed shoulder. "Thank you, Daryl."

He let out a snort, but Harley knew that it wasn't meant out of anger merely he was showing how exasperated with this he was and she chuckled, leaning further into him and after a moment, she parted.

"I'm gonna go see what's goin' on with the whole Lori situation. Probably gonna get some food, you hungry?" There was a slight bob of his head and Harley smiled a bit. "I'll be back."

* * *

><p>After talking to Andrea and learning that Shane had gone after Lori, Harley made her way into the farmhouse to gather some of the long forgotten food for her and Daryl. Just as she was about to head out the door, she glanced up the stairs of the farmhouse and decided to make a quick pitstop in Beth's room to see how the little blonde girl was doing.<p>

"Still no change?" Harley asked from the doorway.

Maggie looked up, startled, but relaxed when she saw who it was. "No. Still the same." She looks down at her younger sister and squeezes her hand. "I was just talkin' to her ... about the old times."

Harley smiles softly at the young woman. "It'll be all right, Mags."

Maggie just tried to smile back but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I hope so."

* * *

><p>When she returned with the two plates of food, she found Daryl exactly where she'd left him. Handing Daryl his plate, he looked up at her. "They find her?"<p>

Harley shook her head as she took a seat. "No. Shane went after her."

Daryl let out a strangled noise that sounded like something between a scoff and a snort. "Real knight in shining armor, that asshole."

Harley frowned and thought of her eye which last time she checked was still black and blue. "Believe me, I know."

They ate in silence and when they were finished Harley decided she'd wait until the morning to bring the plates and utensils back up to the house to be washed. From a distance, Harley could see a vehicle pull up the dirt driveway leading to the farmhouse and could barely make out two figures getting out of the car, figuring it was Shane and Lori.

"You gonna go see how she's doin'?" Daryl asked and Harley shook her head.

"I'll find out in the mornin', I'm too tired." Harley said and got up, setting the plates to the side and crawled into the tent she shared with Daryl while he was busy putting out the fire. It wasn't long before he joined her in the tent, his arms instinctively wrapping around her when he laid down next to her.

His hand slid underneath her shirt and stroked the smooth skin of her stomach which sent shivers up her spine. When he started to nip at her neck while his hand ventured further up her shirt, she peered back at him. "Better not be startin' somethin' you can't finish, Mr. Dixon." She told him in a teasing manner.

He was on top of her in a millisecond, his mouth pressed hard against hers as his hand got even more daring and pushed her shirt all the way up. He frowned, tugging at her bra. "Take this off." He ordered and with a playful roll of her eyes, she sat up slightly, just enough to reach her hand around her back and undo the clasps on her bra pulling the straps through the sleeves of her shirt and throwing it to the side. He leaned back down and bit at her lip. "The shirt, too."

She swiftly pulled the shirt off and over her head and while he busied himself kissing her neck, she started to unbutton his shirt, fumbling a bit since she couldn't see. When she reached about halfway down his chest, his hand came up to stop her ministrations and he pulled back from her.

"You okay?" She asked and was suddenly afraid that she had done something wrong.

He stared down at her, his eyes raking over her naked torso which he could faintly see through the darkness as his eyes adjusted and whatever had been going through his head seemed to vanish when his lips once again found hers and his hands groped at her chest as though he was trying to map out her body with his fingers since the darkness prevented him from seeing much of her.

Having abandoned trying to unbutton his shirt, Harley grasped at the back of his neck, pulling him deeper into the kiss and she bucked beneath him, growing frustrated with the fact he was still wearing jeans while she had removed her pants when she first entered the tent.

While one hand was still occupied with her chest, the other roamed south and brushed lightly over her which elicited a light, airy moan from her which stirred something deep in the pit of his stomach. If he hadn't been excited before, he definitely was now and it only intensified when Harley took charge, pressing a hand to his chest which caused him to sit back. She climbed into his lap, leg on either side of him, and she kissed him while raking her fingers through his hair which he seemed to relax into.

Her lips left his in favor of his neck and began to bite down on the skin there, tasting the saltiness that was left on his skin from a day of being in the sun. He groaned when she bit down on the juncture between his shoulder and neck and she tried not to smile as she sucked on the same spot.

Trailing kisses down his exposed chest, she pulled back and started to unbuckle his belt leaving him in a daze as he watched her. With his help, she pulled down his pants and boxers in one swift movement and when he realized how exposed he was, Daryl could feel all insecurities he ever had begin to creep into the forefront of his mind.

He was thankful for darkness in the tent now, but his mind went completely blank when he felt something wet flick across his shaft and then completely surround it.

"Oh God." He moaned and found his hand with a fistful of her hair as she continued to bob her head up and down. "Harls..." He breathed out and when she finally popped back up, he couldn't say he wasn't disappointed that her operations came to an end.

He could see her outline as she slipped her underwear off and she climbed back into his lap. He shuttered as he felt the heat from in between her legs against him and she kissed him once more before asking. "Don't suppose you got a condom?"

Daryl seemed to deadpan before he realized Merle probably had some in his bag. "Hold on." Daryl muttered and Harley removed herself from him as he rummaged around in the dark looking for Merle's bag and successfully came out with a foil wrapper that glistened in the moonlight.

Harley plucked it from his hands and ripped the wrapper with her teeth which only served to make Daryl's stomach swirl with anticipation. She resumed her position once she put the condom on him and began to ease herself down onto him wishing she could see his face fully as he let out a breathy groan and she had to stop halfway down as a feeling of completion swept through her and she shuttered as pleasure took over.

"You all right?" Daryl questioned when he noticed her stopping. "I ain't hurtin' you, am I?"

Harley shook her head and pushed down the rest of the way, biting her lip as she grinded down against him. He took hold of her hips as she began to ride up and down on him and one hand strayed up to her chest and then to her throat which he grabbed loosely as he tried to control his breathing which was erratic at this point.

The noises she was making were driving him crazy and he decided he had enough of her being the dominant one. Flipping her over onto her back, he never broke contact with her and began to thrust into her, slowly at first as he trailed kisses down her neck, biting down in some spots which caused her to gasp.

"Daryl!" She cried out when he began to pick up the pace, his hips slamming against hers and when one of his hands found the sweet spot between her legs he thought she was going to come undone right there.

He kissed her, taking all of her in and he pulled back slightly to rest his forehead against hers. She looked up into his eyes and moaned his name which made his movements become wilder and rougher.

His face buried into the crook of her neck as he moaned her name, coming close to his breaking point, but she was nearly at hers and a few more strokes of his fingers and thrusts of his hips, she grasped at his shirt, her body tensing up as an orgasm racked her body. She bit down on his shoulder to keep her from crying out, not knowing if they would be heard from all the way over at the farmhouse.

Her tightening around him was all it took for Daryl to cum and he continued to pump into her until after he was done and when it was all over, he looked down at her and she smiled up at him.

"Not bad for our first time together, huh?"

A smile broke out on Daryl's face and he rolled off of her, his chest still heaving up and down as he tried to come down from the high he just experienced. He was vaguely aware of Harley beside him, reaching around the tent for her shirt and underwear, which she clumsily put on in the dark.

He took that as the cue for him to remove the condom, tossing it outside the tent, figuring it would be a problem for the morning and he put on his boxers, leaving his jeans in a crumpled mess beside their sleeping bag.

Harley collapsed into him once he laid back down and she huddled herself into his side, her nose in the crook of his neck with his arm around her.

"Night." She whispered.

"Night, Harls."

In the back of his mind he wondered if this was what happiness felt like.

* * *

><p><strong>SURPRISE SMUT! <strong>

**So, since I had a four hour break between my classes again today I figured I'd try and type something up and it turned into smut and let me tell you, trying to write smut for your first time in a crowded lounge at school all the while keeping a straight face is a very hard thing to do.**

**I hadn't actually planned for a sex scene until later on in the story, but as I was writing the chapter, I feel like now would be a good time before all the craziness that is about to happen in the story occurs. **

**Also, as I said, this is my first time writing smut, so be gentle with your criticisms! I was trying to avoid all the overused phrases and crap that usually makes me cringe while reading sex scenes so I hope I did all right in that aspect. I also didn't want to be terribly detailed, so I hope it was adequate enough for you guys!**

**Another also! If you haven't already, go check out my new Rick/OC story, **_Dearest_**! Go! Go read it! Now!**

**As always, thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! I'm nearing 40,000 views on this story and it's just so insane that I can't believe it. :') **

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think!**


	21. Love While You Can

When Daryl woke up the next morning he could tell by the sun shining through the flap of the tent that it was later in the day than when he normally woke up. Clumsily, he threw his arm out to his side, expecting it to land on a body, but found nothing there.

He spent a moment wondering if last night had been a dream, albeit a _very_ good one, but when a head popped into the tent, his doubts drifted off with what remained of his tiredness. Brown eyes peered in at him curiously. "Yer awake!" Harley smiled at him, a mouth full of food. "Brought ya some breakfast if ya wanna come eat." She told him.

Daryl felt the corners of his mouth twitch into a would-be smile as he shrugged the blankets off of him, joining Harley outside and sitting down next to her after she handed him a plate of food.

"Did Rick come back yet?" He asked.

Harley nodded. "Early this mornin'." By the tone in her voice, Daryl could tell there was more she had to say but seemed a bit unwilling to.

"And…?" He questioned when she hadn't said anything for a few moments.

Her eyes shifted from him to the ground as she contemplated her choice of words. "Lori's pregnant." She finally said and she felt slightly guilty over blabbing her mouth about something she had sworn to keep a secret, although now that everyone at camp knew, it didn't seem fair that Daryl be kept in the dark about it. Daryl nearly choked on his food. "That ain't even the worst news." She paused as she took a bite of her overcooked eggs and only when she finished chewing and swallowed did she say. "They brought someone back…" She proceeded with caution, eyeing Daryl's twisting face. "… a guy around my age."

His eyes darkened and he lowered his plate. "What?" He grounded out.

"They were ambushed by a group of men. The kid got injured and his group left him behind." Harley reiterated what Glenn had told her earlier.

"They had the right idea."

Harley gave him a pointed look. "I ain't happy about it either, but Rick and Hershel are tryin' to figure out what to do with the kid."

Daryl rolled the food on his plate around with his fork before telling Harley, "Make sure ya steer clear of that guy, alrigh'?" He reached out and brushed down some bits of Harley's hair that had begun to stick up with the humidity, his touch lingering a bit longer than intended and Harley smiled at the gesture.

"Do I look like a person who would intentionally put herself in danger?" She teased and the only reply she got was a snort that told her he thought that was exactly the kind of person she looked like.

* * *

><p>"— when he is we give him his canteen, take him to the main road and send him on his way…" Harley opened the door to the farmhouse, entering the middle of the conversation as Rick told the group what his plan was. No one, but Carol and Dale spared Harley and Daryl a second glance as they shuffled into the dining room as quiet as possible so they didn't interrupt the discussion going on.<p>

"Isn't that the same thing as leaving him for the walkers?" Andrea asked.

Rick replied, "At least he'll have a fighting chance."

Shane, as per usual, was the one to have a problem with Rick's method. "Just gonna let him go? He knows where we are."

"He was blindfolded the whole way here." Rick corrected and assured Shane that the kid — Randall, was not a threat.

It was within a matter of milliseconds that the tensions in the room rose and Harley shared a look with Daryl who knew that it was only a matter of time before Rick and Shane were at each other's throats. "Not a threat… How many of them were there?" He asked a rhetoric question. "You killed three of their men, you took one of them hostage, but they just ain't gonna come lookin' for him."

"They left him for dead." Rick insisted. "No one is gonna come lookin' for him."

Shane remained unconvinced and T-Dog trying to be a voice of reason said, "We should still post a guard."

"He's out cold right now." Hershel informed them. "Will be for hours."

"You know what? I'm gonna go get him some flowers and candy." Shane said sarcastically and he began to make his way out of the house, scoffing as he did. "Look at this, folks — we back in Fantasyland."

Harley rolled her eyes at Shane's dramatic antics, but otherwise said nothing considering what happened to her last time she spoke out of turn with him around. A matching bruise on her other eye didn't seem too tempting. Hershel was the one who spoke up.

"You know we still haven't dealt with what you did at my barn." He called out to Shane, stopping the stocky man in his tracks. "Let me make this perfectly clear, once and for all — this is my farm." He laid down. "Now, I wanted you gone. Rick talked me out of it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. So do us both a favor… keep your mouth shut."

Shane did not look as though he knew what to say to the old man's proclamation and with a heavy sigh, he turned and stalked out.

"Christ… what an asshole." Harley grumbled not too loudly, but those who did hear sent a small smile in her direction as she had said what most of them had been thinking.

And like that, the meeting was done and everyone began to file out of the farmhouse, Rick telling Hershel that they weren't going to do anything about Randall today and they needed time to cool off which no one seemed satisfied with.

"I don't know how we keep finding ourselves in these types of situations." Harley told Daryl as they made their way back to their camp.

Daryl just shrugged, "These people ain't realize that being compassionate ain't gonna help us when it comes to the situation we're in now."

Harley looked over at him with an eyebrow raised. "Can't lose all of our humanity, can we?" Daryl's eyes met hers and he gave her an answer that she probably wasn't ready to hear.

"If we're going to survive…"

* * *

><p>A week came and went pretty quickly and it was time for them to send Randall off on his way. Rick and Shane packed up one of the cars and threw the kid in the trunk all tied up and blindfolded to ensure their plan would go off without a hitch.<p>

It was nearing dinner time and while Daryl was out hunting, Harley was playing checkers with Sophia and Carl who would not stop giggling over the fact that Harley was not very good at checkers and they had beaten her every single time either one of them played against her.

"You two have to be cheatin'." She grumbled as she accepted defeat once more at the hands of little Carl who had the biggest shit-eating grin on his face.

"Oh, there you are." Harley turned her head to see Carol coming up the porch steps with a basket of laundry in her hands and she motioned to Sophia to come to her which the young girl did without complaint. "Hope she wasn't too much trouble."

Harley waved the older woman off. "Don't even worry about it. The kid is practically an angel."

A warm smile lit up on Carol's face while Sophia bore a sheepish grin at Harley's compliment before they made their way back to their tent. Carl, however, looked at Harley with a raised eyebrow and asked, "What about me? Am I an angel?"

Harley deadpanned at the boy, "Hardly." A smile broke out on her face as the boy began to whine and complain about her favoring Sophia which she did not deny although Harley wouldn't say that she favored Sophia over Carl, Carl was just a lot to handle at times as most boys his age were.

"Are you teasing my son again?" Lori asked after hearing all the commotion from inside.

"I would never do such a thing, Lori. How could you even accuse me of something like that?" The amount of sarcasm in Harley's tone made Lori smile at her before beckoning the two inside for lunch.

She set two plates at the table for Harley and Carl and told Maggie, who had been helping her with lunch, to sit down and enjoy the meal while she took food up to Beth.

Maggie didn't seem quite herself as she ate her lunch quietly across from Harley and Harley, not wanting to bring anything up in front of Carl, said nothing about the other woman's odd disposition. When Maggie caught sight of Glenn walking outside the farmhouse, she quickly excused herself from the table and sped after him, leaving her plate of food half finished.

"Can I have her chicken?" Carl asked.

Harley gave a shrug, "You're a growing boy. Go for it."

With a grin Carl reached across the table and plucked the piece of chicken off the forgotten plate and began to devour it, blatantly ignoring Harley's pleas for him to eat slower. It was only when his mother walked by and ordered him to slow down did the boy comply.

"Ah, a mother's touch." Harley joked and she could hear Lori laugh from the kitchen as the woman began to do the dishes. Harley heard the clattering of dishes and she glanced back at Lori who made her way hurriedly up the stairs.

"What's up with her?" Carl asked with a mouthful of food.

Harley stared blankly at where Lori had been and replied with a "I 'unno". Moments later, Lori came flying down the stairs, a kitchen knife now in hand which sent red flags up for Harley who was now alert as can be.

"Carl, why don't you go play with Sophia?" Lori suggested, but by the tone of her voice it was more of an order than a request.

Harley nudged Carl in the side when he opened his mouth to say something back to his mother and he took it as a hint to do as he was told and hurried out of the house in search of Sophia.

"Harley, I need you to go upstairs and stay with Beth while I go look for Maggie, alright?"

Harley glanced down at the knife in Lori's hands and then her thoughts went to Beth who had done nothing but stay in her room for the past week in a catatonic state, it didn't take a genius to know why Lori had told her to go keep an eye on Beth.

Her feet pounded against the stairs as she ran up them and when she reached Beth's room she found the young blonde sitting on her bed looking defeated. When she heard Harley's footsteps at her door, Beth glanced over at her before turning her gaze to the floor.

"Beth…" Harley said breathlessly, "… what the hell?"

Beth shook her head, "It's pointless… it's pointless…" She kept repeating. Harley stared at the broken girl before her and with a heavy sigh, she planted herself on the bed in front of Beth and took Beth's cold, clammy hands into her own rough, warm ones.

"It ain't." Harley told her, "It ain't pointless." She squeezed Beth's hands and continued to murmur to the girl. "Ain't pointless… not when ya got your family. People are continuing on with a whole lot less than that." Harley exhaled softly. "It might not ever be how it used to, but ya gotta keep goin'. You might think ya can't ever live with this pain, but ya can… ya can… and it's not gonna get easier, but yer gonna figure out just how strong ya are along the way."

Beth stayed silent and Harley followed suit but she didn't let go of the girl's hands, not until Maggie came rushing in. She spared Beth one last glance and a simple touch on the shoulder before leaving the two sisters alone to work things out.

She found Andrea and Lori downstairs in the kitchen listening to the sisters scream at each other. It was when Andrea and Lori started to go at each other, throwing jabs at one another that Harley decided that the best place for her would probably be away from the house although she didn't go too far.

Glenn seemed to be wandering the perimeter of the house in deep thought when Harley snuck up on him, nearly scaring him out of his pants. "Jesus! Don't do that!" He scolded her as he tried to control his heart rate.

"Sorry, sorry…" Harley apologized although the smile on her face could've told him otherwise. "Why ya wanderin' around like a lost puppy?" She questioned.

"I am not wandering around like a lost puppy." He insisted and when she gave him a pointed look he could only give out an exasperated sigh. "I really don't want to have a whole conversation about my feelings right now."

Harley snorted and hooked her arm through his, pulling him away from the house towards one of the larger oak trees on the property. "Don't really much matter what ya want, unfortunately." She told him and he let out an agitated groan. "Maggie's really good for ya, you know that, right?" She unhooked her arm from his and sat down beneath the tree, motioning for him to sit down beside her which he complied with.

"She loves me." He told Harley who only looked confused at his statement. "She told me she loved me and when we were in town that day, getting shot at… I just… I couldn't think of anything else other than her being hurt if anything were to happen to me and I… froze."

Harley mulled over his words before deciding on her reply. "You're an idiot."

Glenn looked startled at her revelation, "What?"

"You're an idiot!" She repeated and for added emphasis she gave him a firm backhand to his chest which almost knocked the wind out of him. "You love her." She told him. "You love her and you're scared."

An uncomfortable look dawned on his face, "Isn't that normal though? To be scared?"

"Of course it is, but don't you think she's scared, too?" She questioned. "With the world going to shit around us, you don't know if you're gonna make it 'til tomorrow… you don't know if the people you love are gonna make it 'til tomorrow, but that doesn't mean you should push them away."

Glenn sighed and ruffled his hair, pulling at it as he pondered over her words, "Isn't it easier if you just stay at a distance? Wouldn't it hurt less?"

"What's that sayin'? 'It's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all'. Distancin' yerself from people to avoid gettin' hurt or hurtin' others… that ain't livin'." She said. "So, what? Ya convince Maggie to stay away from you and ya never get the chance to tell her that you love her and before ya know it— _cuhh —_" She made a slashing motion along her throat with her finger, "— one of you is dead and the other is miserable anyway."

There was a lot of turmoil going on in Glenn's eyes and Harley hoped he was taking her words to heart. Deciding that he probably would like to be left alone to sort through his thoughts, she stood up and tousled his hair leaving him with one last bit of advice. "Love while you can."

In the distance, she saw Daryl emerging from the woods, a string of squirrel strung over his shoulder and his entire body covered in the grime of the day; a smile lit up on Harley's face as she was pretty positive that she'd never seen a more perfect sight. As she hurried towards him, her eyes met his and there was a ghost of a smile on his face and a glint in his eyes when she welcomed him back. Daryl couldn't help but think that it was almost like she were welcoming him home and the thought caused a tugging sensation at his chest.

It was when she threw her arms around him that he reckoned no matter where he was as long as Harley was there, he could call it home.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm sorry I suck so bad at updating guys D:<strong>


	22. Broken

Randall's pleas could be heard from where Harley stood outside of the shed. She winced as she could only imagine what it was that Daryl was doing to the kid to make him sound so panicky.

She listened as Randall told Daryl about his group in an effort to possibly save his own life and then he began to tell a story about how one day while he and the other men from his group were out scavenging they came upon a father and his two daughters. Harley felt herself grow dizzy as she listened to what they had done to the family and her stomach twisted up in knots.

The painful groans and murmurings that the boy let out as Daryl hit him didn't elicit any kind of sympathy from her now and as much as she wanted to believe that he didn't take part in that kind of disgusting act, she knew that he could be lying to save his own skin.

The door to the shed creaked open and her eyes met Daryl's as he cleaned off the blood on his knuckles with a rag. "Thought I told ya to stay away from here." He grumbled as he shoved the rag into his back pocket before locking the door to prevent Randall from escaping although from the sounds of what went on, the kid probably wasn't even conscious at the moment.

"I figured someone ought to stand watch just in case." Harley told him allowing him to press his hand to the small of her back and lead her away from the shed. "You think he's dangerous?" She asked just before they had reached their group's campsite.

Daryl gave a low grunt as he adjusted his crossbow on his back and Harley fell silent when they approached the group. "Boy, there has group of 30 men. Got heavy artillery and they ain't lookin' to make friends." His gaze flickered between Rick and Shane. "They roll through here, our boys are dead." He looked towards Harley for a split second. "And our women — well, they gonna wish they was."

"What did you do?" Carol asked, her eyes trained on Daryl's bloody knuckles.

Daryl's eyes flashed to his hand then back at her before turning away, "Had a little chat."

"Listen, no one is to go near this guy." Rick ordered.

"Rick, what are you gonna do?" Lori asked.

Rick glanced around, "We have no choice, he is a_ threat._" Shane, who was beside him, seemed to nod his head in agreement. "We have to eliminate the threat."

Dale who had been quiet the entire time, stepped up. "You're just gonna kill him?"

Rick continued on as though he didn't hear him. "It's settled. I'll do it today."

Harley watched as Rick walked away with Dale treading not too far behind. "He's gonna get an earful." She mumbled.

* * *

><p>It wasn't as much as two hours later that Dale found his way to Harley who was busy skinning the squirrel that Daryl had caught the day previously. She didn't look up at him as he approached and he stood there for a few moments before letting out a sigh when she refused to abandon her ministrations.<p>

"You too, huh?" He finally said. "You know, you two are about the same age."

Harley's knuckles turned white as she tightened her grip around the knife she was using, but still refused to look at him. "He's part of a group that's dangerous, Dale. We can't let him go and we sure as hell can't let him join us."

"And why not? Is he automatically guilty by association?" He argued.

Exhaling through her nose, Harley said. "All we have to go by is his word."

"Harley, you can't be serious…" Dale started and halted when Harley looked at him at last.

"It ain't easy to admit, Dale, but Rick is makin' the right call." She told him before he could say anything else. "If we're goin' to survive, we're gonna have to make a lot of tough decisions. The world ain't the way it used to be and sooner or later you're gonna have to realize that. This idealistic vision ya got of how things should be… it ain't reality, Dale." There was hurt forming in Dale's eyes and that was enough to make Harley downcast her gaze once more. "Every day there's a chance of someone dyin'. It ain't wrong of me to say I'd rather it be an enemy than one of our own."

Dale didn't say anymore rather he stood up and walked away, his form slouched in defeat and Harley bit her lip as she resumed her duty trying not to let the weight of Dale's disappointment eat away at her.

* * *

><p>It was Sophia who had found Harley a while later with her face twisted up in remorse. Harley didn't even hear the little girl approaching and she scared the daylights out of Harley when she tapped her on the shoulder.<p>

"Everything okay, Harley?" Sophia asked politely. Her mother always told her it wasn't nice to pry into someone's business, but Sophia also thought that it wasn't nice to ignore someone when they were sad.

Harley smiled at the little girl, although it didn't quite reach her eyes, something Sophia took note of, "'m all right, kid."

There was a long silence and Sophia wrung her hands together before finally saying, "If ya ain't all right, then you can tell me. Don't want you to think just 'cause I'm a kid ya gotta put up a brave front."

Harley blinked in surprise and then a real, genuine smile melted onto her face and she reached out, ruffling the girl's honey colored hair. "You're a good kid."

"Do ya wanna come play checkers with me?" Sophia asked. "Momma's doin' laundry and I can't find Carl."

With a nod, Harley stood up and let the young girl take her hand, allowing Sophia to lead her back to the farmhouse where she had already set up the checker board. The two joked and laughed as Harley once again accused her of cheating.

Lori peeked her head out of the screen door when they were five games in asking if they had seen Carl anywhere. Harley looked to Sophia who shrugged in return. "Haven't seen him." Harley said. "Ya sure he ain't with Rick or Shane somewhere?"

Lori pursed her lips. "They haven't seen him."

Harley frowned, but it disappeared when she saw Carl stumbling his way back towards the farmhouse, looking a little dirtier than before. "Ah, speak of the devil and he shall come."

Relief appeared on Lori's face as she ushered him into the house telling him he had to stay with Jimmy while the group held their meeting which Rick had just called Harley in the house for.

"Best ya go on up with Carl." Harley told Sophia and Carol who had just walked up to the house agreed.

"You go on up." She said to her daughter. "I'll come get you when we're done."

Sophia nodded her head and obediently trailed up the stairs after Carl who seemed put off by the fact he wasn't allowed to listen in on the meeting.

When everyone had settled into the farmhouse, an uncomfortable silence took over and awkward looks were exchanged as no one knew how to start the meeting which would ultimately decide the fate of a twenty-year-old kid.

"So, how do we do this? Just take a vote?" Glenn asked when he realized no one else was going to.

Andrea tacked on another question, "Does it have to be unanimous?"

"How about majority rules?" Lori suggested.

Rick stepped forward saying, "Let's just see where everybody stands then we can talk through the options."

It wasn't surprising that Shane was the one to give his stance on the matter first, "Well from where I sit there's only one way to move forward."

"Killing him, right?" Dale stared down Shane who didn't seem put off by the disgust in the old man's voice. "I mean, why even bother to take a vote? It's clear which way the wind's blowing."

"If people think we should spare him, I wanna know." Rick stated.

Dale seemed downtrodden, "Well, it's just a small group… maybe just me and Glenn."

The young man glanced nervously at Dale, almost unable to meet his eyes and when he did he stuttered out. "Look, I — I think you're pretty much right about everything, all the time, but this—"

Dale cut him off as he said in disbelief, "They've got you scared."

Glenn tried to defend himself, "He's not one of us. And we've — we've lost too many people already."

Dale looked around the room, clenching at his bucket hat that was in his hands and then his gaze landed on Maggie who stood by her father. "How about you? Do you agree with this?"

Maggie looked ill at ease about the question being directed at her, "Couldn't we just keep him prisoner?" She asked Rick.

It was Daryl who answered, "Just another mouth to feed."

"It could be a lean winter." Hershel said.

"We could ration better." Lori added.

"Well, he could be an asset. Give him a chance to prove himself." Dale told them.

"Put him to work?"

Rick was quick to shoot that idea down, "We can't let him walk around."

"We could put an escort on him." Was Maggie's solution.

Shane sarcastically replied, "Who wants to volunteer for that duty?"

"I will." Dale declared.

Rick seemed fed up with the entire discussion, "Look, _no one_ is walking around with this guy."

"He's right." Lori concured. "I wouldn't feel safe unless he was tied up."

"We can't just put chains around his ankles and sentence him to hard labor." Andrea disputed.

"Look, say we let him join us, right? Maybe he's helpful, maybe he's nice. We let our guard down and maybe he runs off, brings back his thirty men." Shane said.

Harley, for the first time since the discussion started, spoke up and to the surprise of most, agreed with Shane. "People will pretend to be a lot of things they aren't just to survive." She told them garnering their attention. "We gotta go on the facts we have. He was with a group of men who were _shooting_ at our own. Sure, he says that he ain't like the other men in his group, but how do we know that when all we got to go on is his word?" She looked to Dale. "Dale, I'm sorry, but I ain't willing to risk the off chance that _maybe _he's a man of his word."

"So the answer is to kill him to prevent a crime that he may never even attempt?" Dale asked, his frustration showing as voice raised. "If we do this, we're saying there's no hope. Rule of law is dead. There is no civilization."

Shane let out a groan and an 'oh my god' as Hershel questioned Rick, "Could you drive him further out? Leave him like you planned?"

Lori was quick to object to that, "You barely came back last time." She started listing all the things that could possibly go wrong, "There are walkers, you could break down, you could get lost—"

"Or get ambushed." Daryl added.

"They're right, we should not put our own people at risk." Glenn stated.

Patricia, who was normally quiet at this group meetings, asked, "If you were to go through with it… how would you do it? Would he suffer?"

Rick looked around for a moment before his gaze landed on Shane who threw out an idea, "We could hang him? Y'know, just snap his neck…"

"Yeah, I thought about that." Rick admitted. "Shooting may be more humane."

"And what about the body, do we bury him?" T-Dog asked, but Dale was hasty to try and end that part of the discussion, "You're talking as though you've already decided!"

"We've been talking all day, you just wanna go around in circles again?" Daryl asked as he paced back and forth which made Harley grab onto his arm since his pacing was making her nervous.

"This is a young man's life!" Dale exclaimed. "And it is worth more than a five-minute conversation! Is this what it's come to? We kill someone because we can't decide what else to do with him?! You saved him and now look at us. He's been tortured. He's gonna be executed. How are we any better than those people we're so afraid of?"

There was a weight that everyone in that room felt, well except for Shane, "We all know what needs to be done."

"No, Dale is right." Rick said to him. "We can't leave any stone unturned here, we have a responsibility."

"So, what's the other solution?" Andrea asked.

"Let Rick finish." Lori told her.

"We haven't come up with a single viable option, yet." Andrea said, "I wish we could but—"

"So, let's work on it!" Dale pushed.

"We are." Rick insisted.

"Stop it." Carol spoke, "Just stop it. I'm sick of everybody arguing and fighting. I didn't ask for this. You can't ask us to decide something like this." She looked to Rick and Dale, "Please decide — either of you, both of you, but leave me out."

"Not speaking out or killing him yourself — there's no difference."

Carol's eyes welled up with tears at Dale's proclamation and Rick told him that that was enough and after a moment, he allowed for anyone who wanted to speak to take the floor.

"You once said that we don't kill the living." Dale told him, reiterating what Rick had told Daryl while they were at the quarry.

"That was before the living tried to kill us." Rick argued.

"But don't you see, if we do this the people that we were, the world that we knew is dead." Dale tried to reason. "And this new world is ugly. It's… harsh. It's survival of the fittest… and that's a world I don't wanna live in and I don't believe that any of you do." His eyes glazed over with tears. "I can't." He begged, "Please. Let's just do what's right." After a moment of no one saying anything he asked more desperately than before, "Isn't there anybody else that's gonna stand with me?"

A few bowed there heads to avoid Dale's stare. "He's right." Andrea said earning a few shocked looks. "We should try to find another way."

"Anybody else?" Rick questioned and when no one uttered a word, Rick sent Dale a look indicating that it had been decided.

Dale looked broken at this point and he asked everyone, "Are y'all gonna watch, too? No, you'll go hide your heads in your tents and try to forget that we're slaughtering a human being." He shook his head. "I won't be a party to it." As he made his way out, he stopped by Daryl placing his hand on Daryl's shoulder and telling him, "This group _is_ broken."

* * *

><p>"Why'd he say that to you?" Harley asked when her and Daryl were finally alone at their campsite.<p>

"Say what?" Daryl asked and Harley sent him a glare at him for playing dumb. "I told him that when he came around trying to convince everyone to spare the kid's life. Seems he finally understood why I said it."

"Do ya really think we're broken?" Harley asked.

Daryl nodded and murmured a low 'yeah'.

* * *

><p>When the sun had finally set, Rick had made his way over to the campsite where he found Daryl and Harley chatting over roasted squirrel. "It's time." He told Daryl who bobbed his head in return. He wiped his hands off on his pants and handed his plate to Harley before placing a kiss on her cheek which Rick kindly pretended he didn't see.<p>

"I'll be back." He told her.

Harley tried to smile. Although she had voted yes on killing Randall, it didn't mean she didn't feel any guilt over it. Once Daryl disappeared with Rick, Harley put out their fire and made her way to where Carol and Sophia staying in the group's camp.

Carol didn't question her as she made her way into their tent and took a seat beside Sophia who instantly was at the young woman's side, chatting away happily, oblivious to the reason for the girl's sudden appearance in their tent. Carol kept quiet and busied herself with sewing a pair of Sophia's pants that the girl had ripped the day before.

It wasn't but twenty minutes later that Rick and Shane along with Carl showed up at the group's campsite, Rick stating that they were going to keep Randall in custody for now.

Andrea smiled at the news and told them she was going to find Dale.

"Daryl's locking him back up in the shed right now." Rick told Harley. "He should be back soon."

Harley nodded and decided she was going to wait at the group's campsite for Daryl to come back. Dinner was being cleaned up at this point and Harley began to help out Lori and Carol in the meantime.

Just as everyone was settling in for the night, a scream ripped through the air.

"Carl, go to the house, take Sophia with you!" Lori ordered her son. "Lock the door!"

The two children dashed away towards the farmhouse as the rest of the camp went into panic mode, Rick ordering for T-Dog to grab a shotgun and everyone else flew towards the screaming.

"Dale!" Andrea screamed as everyone ran blindly into the dark field.

Daryl was the first to reach Dale, tackling the walker off of him and planting a knife into the thing's skull. "Over here!" He yelled so the rest of the group could find them.

Harley was out of breath when she got there and any other form of air in her lungs seemed to disappear when she saw Dale on the ground with his abdomen ripped open. Her mind went blank.

Rick was yelling for someone to get Hershel and Andrea was trying to help Dale calm down, reassuring him that they were here. Hershel seemed to have teleported to their location and when Rick frantically told him he needed perform an operation, Hershel shook his head, his hand on Rick's shoulder.

"No!" Rick let out a heart wrenching yell.

Tears were already running down Harley's face and she rubbed at her eyes as she tried to keep her composure. Glenn, who was beside her, looked more lost than ever as they watched Dale struggle to breathe.

"He's suffering." Andrea said from Dale's side. "Do something!"

Rick held out his pistol and aimed it at Dale's head and when he hesitated, a hand came out and grabbed the gun from him, Daryl stepping into his place. He knelt down before cocking his gun, his hand not wavering as he held it to Dale's head.

"Sorry, brother."

_Bang._

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! I'm trying not to suck so bad at updating, so here ya go!<strong>

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! You guys are awesome!**

**I'm gonna be away this weekend, but I'll try and get another chapter out next week. Now that Season 5 is on, I'm feeling a little bit more inspiration to write so expect quite a few updates in the coming weeks.**


	23. She Loved You

Daryl wasn't okay after that and Harley knew it. She couldn't even muster up a single word to say to him as they settled down for the night in their tent. The two laid there for a long while, neither one of them saying anything all the while knowing that the other was awake.

It was Daryl who rolled over towards her, grasping at her waist and burying his face into the crook of her neck. Harley didn't hesitate as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him tightly against her. He didn't cry and Harley had ran out of tears a couple of hours ago so they just held onto each other until sleep finally took over.

* * *

><p>The funeral they held was hard to get through. There hand't been any funerals before this. Not for Amy, or Anna, or Jim, or Jacqui. They just picked up and moved on, holding onto whatever heartache they felt and pushing it into the back of their minds because surviving was more important than grieving.<p>

But now they had the time to mourn. They had time to reflect over the death of someone important to them; important to their group.

Rick spoke of Dale and his idealistic tendencies, declaring that the group would honor Dale in the only way they could; by doing things his way.

Harley looked around at the group, most had their eyes downcast, but Shane held his gaze on Rick and there was a fire blazing in his eyes.

* * *

><p>It was decided that their group would be moving into the farmhouse immediately since the nights were getting colder and the incident with Dale proved that the perimeter around the farm was not as secure as everyone had previously thought it was. With the cattle and other livestock on the farm, it was a surprise that there had been no occurrences beforehand. Like Maggie said, they might as well have been ringing a dinner bell.<p>

Daryl didn't argue with Harley when she expressed her interest in moving camp to the farmhouse with the rest of the group and Harley liked to think it was because he thought himself to be an actual member of the group now and not just an outsider looking in.

The farmhouse, as big as it was, was still a snug fit for the group of sixteen. Maggie and Patricia were busy instructing everyone where they would be staying as well as helping everyone settle in.

Harley was busy setting up a little miniature camp in the corner of the dining room when Glenn came in with all of his things. She pretended not to hear Maggie come in and offer Glenn a place in her room which Glenn quickly shot down. She watched Maggie walk away stricken from rejection and when Harley knew Maggie was out of earshot, she side-eyed Glenn.

"I don't want a neighbor." She told him when he dropped his things next to her small area.

Glenn looked hopelessly around the room which was already getting crowded with everyone else's belongings, "Where else am I supposed to go?"

Harley gave him a pointed look before turning and walking out of the room setting out to say goodbye to Daryl who was going off with Rick to drop Randall off somewhere far, far away.

At least, that was the plan until T-Dog discovered that Randall was no longer in the shed where he had been locked up for the past week and a half. Panic set in amongst the group as everyone gathered to the shed where Rick and Hershel were looking around trying to figure out how the boy had escaped.

"Rick! Rick!" Shane emerged from the woods with his face bloodied.

Lori called out to him as he approached the group, "What happened?"

"He's armed!" Shane said. "Little bastard snuck up on me and clocked me in the face."

Rick immediately took initiative, ordering everyone, but T-Dog, Daryl, and Shane into the house. Daryl glanced over at Harley who didn't look as though she was going to comply with Rick's request. "We'll be back soon." He assured her and the tone in his voice told her there wasn't going to be any room for discussion.

"All right." She finally said. "Be careful."

* * *

><p>Night fell quickly and they still had not come back yet. Everyone busied themselves with some kind of task while T-Dog and Harley took watch. T-Dog kept to the living room where he could see straight out towards the field and Harley stayed upstairs with the kids, looking out from one of the windows.<p>

Carl had a pair of binoculars and assisted Harley with keeping watch while Sophia was reading one of Beth's old Harry Potter books.

"Hey, I'm gonna go to the bathroom, okay?" Harley told Carl. "Man the post."

"All right." Carl said a feeling of importance swelling in his chest as he raised his binoculars to his eyes to gaze out into the darkness.

As Harley made her way to the bathroom, Beth's head popped out from one of the bedrooms, "Can you give me a hand with this?" She asked.

Harley watched Beth struggle with a large bin and quickly took the other side of it, grunting at the weight of the thing, "Where ya want it?"

"Up in the closet." Beth instructed. "Full of summer clothes, ain't got much of a use for them right now." She commented. With a bit of trouble, the two managed to lift the heavy bin onto the shelf in the back of Beth's closet. "Thank you."

"Not a problem." Harley told her and started for the bathroom again.

When she finally made it back to the room, Carl was nowhere to be found and Sophia was still reading.

"Where'd Carl go?" Harley asked Sophia.

Sophia glanced up from the book which had her completely enthralled. "He said he was goin' downstairs to get somethin' to eat."

Harley quirked an eyebrow as she found it strange that the young boy would abandon his post, knowing that Carl liked to be given tasks that were usually assigned to the adults around camp, but she shrugged off the unsure feeling.

He knew better than to wander off.

* * *

><p>When Harley heard the front door open downstairs, she dropped what she was doing and rushed down the stairs, Sophia close behind her. She practically skipped the last step as soon as she saw it was Daryl and Glenn walking through the door.<p>

"Rick and Shane ain't back yet?" Daryl asked when he noticed that the duo was missing.

"No." Lori replied.

Glenn said, "We heard a shot."

"Maybe they found Randall."

"We found him." Daryl told her.

"Is he back in the shed?" Maggie questioned.

Daryl glanced back at Glenn who returned the gaze, "He's a walker."

"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel asked.

Glenn answered, explaining to everyone that Randall wasn't bitten and Daryl elaborated saying that his neck was broken earning confused gazes from everyone else.

"So, he fought back."

"The thing is Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other and Shane ain't no tracker." Daryl explained, "So he didn't come up behind him. They were together."

"Would you please get back out there and find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?" Lori pleaded.

Daryl looked over at Harley and then back to Lori before nodding, "You got it."

"Thank you."

Harley followed the two men out onto the porch with Andrea on their tail and when they looked out towards the field, they stopped in their tracks. "What in the hell…"

There were so many of them.

Glenn called Hershel outside and after spotting the herd of walkers coming their way he ordered Patricia to go turn all the lights off in the house and Maggie to get the guns.

Glenn asked whether or not they should go inside, recalling how the herd on the highway just blew right past them and Daryl shot that option down, "Unless ya got a secret tunnel in the basement I don't know about — that many of them'll just tear the house right down."

"Carl's gone!" Lori cried out when she came flying out of the house, "He was upstairs and now he's gone!"

Harley stared at her, puzzled. "He told Sophia he was goin' to get somethin' to eat."

"I didn't even see him come downstairs!" Lori exclaimed. "I'm not leaving without my boy!"

"We're not!" Carol assured her, "We're gonna look again. We're gonna find him." Sophia went to follow after her mother, but Carol stopped her. "Sophia, you stay with Harley. She'll keep you safe."

Sophia looked to Harley who held her hand out to the little girl, "C'mon kid." She grabbed hold of Sophia's hand and in the other she took a shotgun that Maggie handed to her.

Hershel, who Harley had never seen handle a gun before, cocked one of the guns. "That ain't gonna be no use." Daryl told him and when Hershel told him that he could leave if he wanted, Daryl asked, "You gonna take 'em all on?"

"We have guns. We have cars." Hershel responded.

"We take out as many as we can and use the cars to lure the rest off the farm." Andrea explained.

"Are you serious?"

"This is my farm. I'll die here." Hershel declared.

Daryl pressed his lips to the side of Harley's face before saying, "It's as good as night as any." With that he bounded over the porch banister making off towards his motorcycle.

Harley knelt down so she was eye level with Sophia who was shaking like a leaf. She ran her hand through Sophia's hair and rested it on her cheek. "Sophia, ya gotta listen real careful, all right?" Sophia nodded as she tried put on a brave front, but Harley knew she must've been terrified. "If we get separated for whatever reason and ya can't find yer mama, you go and find Daryl, okay? Daryl will keep ya safe."

"O-okay." Sophia nodded her head vigorously.

Harley smiled at the girl before taking her hand and following after Andrea and T-Dog who were heading towards the truck. Harley gestured for Sophia to get in the middle of the cab as Andrea hopped in the passenger's seat. Andrea handed Harley another gun, a pistol, which Harley shoved in her waistband before jumping into the bed of the truck, knocking her hand against the back window of the cab to signal T-Dog that she was ready.

Everyone made off towards the fields where the majority of the walkers were. Harley was shooting off rounds with the shotgun into any walkers that were within a close enough range as T-Dog circled around the property, plowing through whatever got in his way.

Harley, out of the corner of her eye, saw Lori, Carol, Beth, and Patricia making their way out of the farmhouse only to have walkers in their way, Patricia getting surrounded very quickly.

She pounded against the roof of the cab, "T-Dog, over there!" T-Dog must've saw what she was referring to because he floored it towards the women, cutting off the walkers from one side while Andrea got out of the truck to take care of the ones behind them.

"Get Carol, she ran that way!" Lori told Andrea who went after the older woman who had her back up against the shed, walkers converging on her.

"Carol!" Harley called out when she could no longer see the woman in the crowd of walkers.

Lori hopped into the truck and Harley heaved Beth into the back with her. "You know how to shoot?" Harley asked. Beth bobbed her head and her hands quivered around the shotgun that Harley handed her. "Get to shootin'." Harley ordered before jumping out of the back of the truck.

"We have to go!" Lori yelled when she saw Andrea fall to the ground with a walker on top of her.

"Go!" Harley shouted to T-Dog who was motioning for her to get back into the truck, "I'll be fine! Take care of Sophia!" There was a moment of doubt for T-Dog before he sped out of there as quickly as possible.

There was no uncertainty as Harley pulled the trigger again and again until she cleared a path to where Carol had been, but the woman was nowhere in sight. Carol's footprints led into the woods behind the shed and there was a trail of blood following after them. The walkers seemed far too interested in everything else going on at the house to notice Harley creeping off into the woods, trailing after the footprints and line of blood.

Harley's heart was in her throat as she saw the scrunched up form of someone against a tree and heard a soft crying. "Carol?" Harley whispered.

The person jumped and turned, "Harley…" There was relief in Carol's voice as she realized it was Harley who had snuck up on her and then there was pain. "… I got bit."

Her heart fell into her stomach as she quickly approached the woman, falling to her knees in front of Carol who was clenching at her upper arm, blood coating her hand. "Oh, Carol…" Harley spoke softly as she laid her hand on the woman's knee.

There was a moment of pause before Carol laid her other hand on Harley's causing Harley to look up into the woman's eyes. "You'll take care of Sophia, won't you?"

"Carol, I —"

"Please," She begged, "… she thinks the world of you, y'know — there's no one else I would trust with my baby's life…"

Tears gathered in Harley's eyes and she squeezed the older woman's hand, "All right." Harley finally agreed.

"You'll tell her I love her, right?" Carol asked. "Tell her I love her so much… more than anything..."

Whatever words Harley could think of got caught in her throat and she nodded her head instead, assuring the woman she would relay her daughter the message.

"You need to go." Carol urged. "You'll get left behind." Harley felt her lip quiver as she unwillingly pulled her hand from Carol's cold grasp. "Harley —" She paused mid-step and looked back at Carol who seemed hesitant to ask, "I don't want to turn into one of those things…"

Harley grabbed the pistol from her waistband and for the first time since she was seven and first learning how to shoot having a gun in her hand felt unfamiliar.

"It's all right." Carol told her, "Please…" Harley sucked in a deep breath as she pointed the gun at Carol's forehead, "Go on…"

_"I'm so sorry…"_

* * *

><p>Daryl found Harley running from the wreckage of the farm, out of breath with tears streaming down her face and walkers following closely after her. He shot at the few walkers who were a bit too close for comfort before yelling at her to get on the back of his bike which she did in an instant.<p>

When Harley's arms wrapped around his waist, he gunned it, narrowly escaping the jaws of the walkers. He weaved in and out, avoiding any walkers and abandoned cars along the streets until they finally reached a main road.

"The highway…" Harley said as they cruised down the road, the threat of walkers no longer as imminent as it had been. "We need to go to the highway."

Daryl didn't make any indication that he had heard her, but his grip tightened around the handles of his bike and he went a little bit faster than before. He didn't know if she realized how close he had been to losing her.

* * *

><p>They were nearing the highway when Harley realized that she heard the sound of cars behind them. She turned her head to see Glenn and Maggie coming up from the rear and a blue pick up truck not too far behind.<p>

Despite all of the circumstances, Harley smiled at the familiar faces through the windshields.

When they pulled up to the highway, they saw Rick, Carl, and Hershel had already made it there. Everyone rushed out of their vehicles and ran to their loved ones who they thought they had lost back at the farm.

Harley spotted Sophia clumsily getting out of the truck and looking around for her mother, but when she spotted Harley she immediately made a mad dash for her. Harley received her with open arms and tried to smile at the girl who clung to her waist.

"Sophia, listen…" Harley pulled the girl to the side and this didn't go unnoticed by anyone who warily watched as Harley fell to her knees in front of the girl, holding Sophia's tiny, soft hands in her own rougher ones, "...your mama…" Sophia must've known what was coming because the tears were already welled up in her eyes, "… she didn't make it, sweetheart."

Sophia didn't even say anything, she just flung herself into Harley's arms and started sobbing. The rest of the group sent sympathetic looks towards the girl who Harley was desperately trying to soothe, but she knew better than anyone that there was nothing worse than the death of a parent.

"She loved you…" Harley mumbled into the girl's hair, "… she loved you so much."

Harley held the girl in her arms and made a silent vow to herself that she wouldn't let anything happen to this little girl. She wasn't going to break her promise to Carol. She wasn't going to let another person down. Not again.

Sophia may not have any family left in the world, but Harley was going to make damn sure she knew that she was far from alone.

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! So, I'm gonna try to get at least a chapter a week out (no promises tho), but I'm currently working on another story right now, a collaboration with bestroreedus88. It's on our joint account BestroScare and it's entitled The End of All Things. It's a DarylOC story as well if you guys wanna go check it out, it'd mean the world to me!**

**This chapter might seemed a little rushed because, well, it was, haha. I really wanted to finally be done with Season 2 and get onto the Prison, so I flew through the last three episodes of Season 2. Hope you guys don't mind!**

**Also, so... I killed Carol off. I've been planning on doing it since I first started this story and I hope you guys are all right with that! I have absolutely nothing against Carol, in fact, she's one of my favorite characters, especially in the current season, so I'm sorry if you're upset by it (trust me, I am, too), but I did it for a reason!**

**Anyway!**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their story alerts! I'm so glad you guys like it :)**


	24. On the Road Again

It was late into the afternoon and what remained of their group was making camp on the side of an old country road. Hershel's SUV had run out of gas and Rick declared this was as good of place as any and they would go scavenging once morning came. Rick refused to let Maggie and Glenn go for a run to see if they could find some gas, claiming the group needed to stay together, now more than ever.

When Daryl brings up Randall and how he and Glenn had found him turned but without any bite marks, Rick looks off to the side as Beth questions, "How's that possible?"

"Rick, what the hell happened?" Lori asked.

"Shane killed Randall." Daryl concluded. "Just like he always wanted to."

"And then the herd got him?"

Rick was silent for a few moments before he dropped the bomb, "We're all infected." Everyone looked at him with disbelief and Daryl inquired what he meant. "At the C.D.C., Jenner told me. Whatever it is. We all carry it."

Most of the others in the group seemed furious with Rick for keeping that from them and when he walked off with Lori following after him, Glenn was muttering angrily to himself.

"What difference would it have made?" Harley questions aloud and attention turned to her and when no one answered she continued, "So, what? People can turn even if they aren't bit? That's fine. Now we know that when someone dies, we make sure they don't come back." she huffed, "Don't know what y'all are getting yer panties twisted for. We keep doin' what we've been doin'; surviving. It don't change nothin'."

There were some mumbles of agreement, namely from T-Dog and Hershel, but still the majority of the group still seemed to hold resentment towards the leader of their group.

Nightfall did not bring any ease and everyone was jumping at every branch snapping, every leaf crunching, every gust of wind. When most were up on their feet declaring that it was time to move on instead of waiting for more walkers to come, Rick stood by and told them, "No one is going anywhere."

"We need to do something." Maggie insisted.

"I am doing something!" Rick argued. "I'm keeping this group together, alive. I've been doing that all along." His anger grew with each word. "I didn't ask for _this_. I killed my best friend for you people, for Christ's sake!"

As everyone stared in surprise, he calmed himself and said, "You saw what he was like, how he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing, led me out to put a bullet in my back. He gave me no _choice_." Carl began to cry and as Lori tried to comfort him, Rick continued. "He was my friend, but he came after me. My hands are clean.

Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead. I say there's a place for us, but maybe it's just another pipe dream, maybe — maybe I'm fooling myself again. Why don't you — why don't you go and find out yourself. _Send me a postcard_. Go on, there's the door. You can do better? Let's see how far you get." There wasn't a single person who made even a noise. "No takers? Fine, but let's get one thing straight, you're staying, this isn't a _democracy_ anymore."

* * *

><p><em>Four Months Later…<em>

The days were cold and the nights were far colder as winter began. Harley was grateful that they did not live any further north or life on the road would be even more unbearable.

They ate what they could and slept when they got the chance, never staying in one place for too long in fear that they'd be overrun soon enough. Harley kept track of the places they've been on a map and while they had been traveling for some time now, they managed to stay within the same area, often circling back to places they knew to be safe.

One of the first things Harley did when the turmoil in the group had settled down a bit was teach Sophia how to work and shoot a gun. The little girl was apprehensive at first, saying something along the lines of 'I don't think mama would like this', but Harley had assured her that this was something her mother would have wanted her to learn, especially now.

The girl was practically a natural at it and Harley felt a small amount of pride and even mentally patted herself on the back, declaring proudly what a great teacher she was. Daryl had told her she had too big a sense of self worth.

It was during their time on the road that Harley fell under the mentorship of Hershel, learning whatever medical jargon she could from the old vet. She found it funny in a way; it only took an apocalypse for her to finally fulfill her father's wish of entering the medical profession although bandaging up scrapes and bruises would hardly be considered a profession.

Hershel had insisted that someone learn the trade in case something were to ever happen to him and while Maggie had a decent grasp on the basic having grown up watching her father perform various procedures on animals, he taught Harley in a more in depth way to the point where she thought her head was going to explode with all the information he was giving her. She was grateful though, she knew that these skills he was teaching her were invaluable.

Daryl had also found his place among the group and Harley was glad to see how he had integrated himself more into the inner workings of the group often joking that he was Rick's wingman. Daryl would just shake his head and tell her to keep quiet.

With Lori drawing close to popping, it was top priority to find a place where they could settle down for more than a few days which had proven difficult. So, when they came across another old rundown house, it seemed like their search was going nowhere.

"Ever had owl before?" Daryl asked as he held up the carcass of an owl he had just shot after they cleared the house.

Harley made a face at the fowl, but with her stomach grumbling the way it was, she knew she had no room to complain, hell, it wasn't like they hadn't been eating squirrel for months now.

As everyone gathered in the house, buckling down for the night, Carl came in with two cans of what looked to be dog food which he was eager to open. When Rick turned around and saw what his son was doing a scowl formed on his face. He stalked over towards Carl and picked the can up, throwing it into the unlit fireplace of the house.

The others looked around uncomfortably until T-Dog motioned outside where a few walkers were straggling through the yard. The group was up in a flash, collecting what little they had and making their way out of the house as quietly as possible. Harley pulled Sophia along with her and helped her into the back of the pickup truck before rounding the passenger's side where a very pregnant Lori was struggling to get into the truck.

"Up ya go." said Harley as she helped Lori into her seat.

Lori thanked her quietly and Harley returned to the driver's side and started the truck, wincing at how loud the engine was. Once Daryl pulled out ahead of her, she put the truck into drive and followed after him glancing in her rearview making sure the other two vehicles weren't far behind.

Within the last few months Harley had been behind the wheel enough that she no longer felt a wave of dread overcome her whenever she drove which proved to be a good thing considering the number of times she ended up in the driver's seat during an escape from a herd.

When they got far enough down the road, the group stopped to discuss where they would be going next. Harley pulled out her map and stretched it out across the hood of the green car.

"There ain't anywhere left." she mumbled when Maggie came to her side.

Maggie frowned as she examined the map pointing to the two large circles on the map, "Once these two herds meet up, we'll be cut off. We'll never make it south."

"What would you say? That was about 150 head?" Daryl asked as everyone assembled by the hood of the car.

"That was last week. It could be twice that by now." Glenn said.

Harley nodded in agreement, "We don't know if there were any other herds close by. Could be a lot more than we can handle."

"This river could've delayed them." Hershel voiced as he pointed at a river on the map, "If we move fast we might have a shot to tear right through there."

T-Dog spoke next, "Yeah, but if this group joins in with that one they could spill out this way."

"So, we're blocked." concluded Maggie.

"The only thing to do is double back up to 27 and swing towards Greenville." Rick indicated.

Harley frowned as she looked at the little Xs she had scribbled on the map as T-Dog mentioned, "Yeah, we picked through that already. It's like we spent the winter going in circles."

"Yeah, I know. I know. At Newnan we'll push west. Haven't been through there yet. We can't keep going house to house. Need to find someplace to hold off for a few weeks." He glanced over at Lori who was waiting in the truck for everyone with Sophia valiantly guarding her.

Everyone agreed with his plan and the group dispersed to go gather whatever water they could from the creek nearby. Harley returned to Lori and offered her what little water she had left in her canteen which Lori tried to refuse, but if the last few months taught Lori anything, it was that Harley was the most hardheaded, stubborn woman she had ever met.

"Drink up, Mama Bear." said Harley before she turned to Sophia, "You doin' okay, Phia?" Sophia nodded, but Harley could tell that the lack of food was taking its toll on the little girl. Harley smiled grimly and ran her hand through the girl's hair, "Don't worry, we'll find somethin' soon."

Daryl made his way over to the trio, telling Harley that he was going hunting with Rick, "You gonna stay here?" he asked although he already knew the answer. Harley hadn't left Sophia's side very often since the farm was overrun and while he knew that her top priority was looking after the little girl, he couldn't help but want her to take a bit of a break from it mostly because Rick was shit at tracking.

Harley gave a nod, "Be careful." she said.

He responded with a chaste kiss on her forehead and a hair ruffle for Sophia who let out an annoyed whine at the man's display of affection. Harley smiled though and waved to Daryl and Rick who disappeared into the woods.

Everyone went about their business until Daryl and Rick returned prematurely from their hunt.

"There's a prison not far from here." Rick explained and it wasn't long before the group was packed up and on the road once again.


End file.
